Jean LETOURNEUR (1954) - Lot 179

Jean LETOURNEUR (1954) Bust of Catherine Deneuve as Marianne 1985 Original plaster on steel base Engraved (on back): JEAN LETOURNEUR MARIANNE 1985 48 x 30 x 45 cm Jean Letourneur was one of 24 sculptors who responded to the 1985 competition for a bust of Marianne. Among the competitors were Albert Bouquillon, Lisbeth Delisle and Émile Morlaix. All worked from photographs, without the model, Catherine Deneuve, posing for them. Jean Letourneur designed his work so that it could be viewed from a low angle. He incorporated the proportional relationships governed by the golden section that are characteristic of the actress's face. Rather than depicting the Phrygian cap, he suggests it by adding oak branches to the headdress, framing her face. The symbolism of the oak is sometimes associated with that of the Republic, as in the statue by Soitoux, executed in 1848 and installed on the Quai Malaquais in Paris.