The face
Charles Lhermitte, the youngest son of the naturalist painter Léon Lhermitte, had a brilliant career as a chemist, and, inspired by the work of his father, was also a photographer (various scenes, landscapes, portraits of women, and images of the 1914-18 War).
The mouth
Camille Claudel sculpted him during the summer of 1888. He was 7 years old at the time and still had the androgynous face of children of that age. Numerous details keep him tied to young childhood, including the plump cheeks, the Cupid's bow mouth and the well-defined philtrum or "mark of the angel".
The hair
His face is framed with long curly hair, reinforcing the androgyny. The artist brings the bronze to life with powerful undulating and asymmetrical movements. The rough and wrought material contrasts with the nuanced polish of the flesh.
The bust
Despite being a beautiful and very finely worked wax casting, this Montauban bronze is signed neither by the artist nor by the founder Gruet. This is probably due to a small casting accident that can be seen under the left collarbone of the child. This work, of which there is only one other cast, is evocative of the fine features of the Little Chatelaine.
La petite châtelaine [The Little Chatelaine], by Camille Claudel, a marble bust carved in 1895. S.01007. Musée Rodin, Paris. © Creative commons. Photographer: Vassil -2018
View from below
Like all bronze works, this work is the result of a succession of stages that culminate in the casting. The resulting work is hollow.
An important donor
This work was donated in 1893 by Baron Alphonse de Rothschild, Camille Claudel's first patron, who supported the sculptress very early on in her career by purchasing her work and helping her gain press recognition.