René LETOURNEUR (1898-1990) - Lot 1

René LETOURNEUR (1898-1990) Judith, returning to Bethulia after cutting off Holofernes' head, takes the head from her bag and shows it to the crowd. 1926 Original plaster 79.5 x 43 x 27 cm René Letourneur's Judith earned him the Premier Grand Prix de Rome 1926 from the École des Beaux-Arts, bringing him widespread recognition. His work made the front page of Minerva, the women's illustrated magazine (see 2009 EXHIBITION, p. 15). Her proposal differs brilliantly from those of the two Second Prize winners: Judith's head turned away from Holofernes' introduces a dramatic tension that gives the composition its full scope. The artist's style in the 1920s was marked by long, lanky figures, their hair treated with great detail, which achieve monumentality thanks to the rhythm of the folds in their drapery, as in Reliefs antiques of 1925 (2009 EXHIBITION, p.11, no.1, repr.) and Christ en Majesté de l'église de Sailly-Saillisel of 1926-1927 (2009 EXHIBITION, p.13, repr.). A plaster cast of Judith, a statutory deposit, is kept at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts (PRS 112). Bibliography : 2009 EXPOSITION, p. 15 (repr.), p. 188, p. 219