LHERMITTE Léon, 1844-1925 - Lot 77

LHERMITTE Léon, 1844-1925 The spinner, study for Joan of Arc black stone and red chalk drawing on paper (stains, foxing and traces of folding in upper right) signed lower right 62 x 48 cm HISTORY: The catalog raisonné Léon Lhermitte by Monique Le Pelley Fonteny mentions a project for a Joan of Arc in 1913: "During 1913, Suzanne Delaitre, the painter's little cousin, on vacation in Mont-Saint-Père, helped Lhermitte to tile some of his canvases... During the month of July, Lhermitte thought of painting a Joan of Arc after Suzanne Delaitre, who was sixteen. The idea was to be taken up again the following year, but the war, the death of his wife and daughter-in-law, and Suzanne's move to England, meant that Lhermitte abandoned the project. (according to Suzanne Delaitre's memoirs, p.74) Our drawing probably relates to this project, which was never completed: the young woman, whose halo is still visible, and the listening attitude, are indeed elements that usually evoke the figure of Joan of Arc.