227 - Yvonne Lerolle, perhaps *The Sower* or *Corpus Christi Day* / *Marthe*

Yvonne Lerolle, perhaps *The Sower* or *Corpus Christi Day* / *Marthe* Black chalk, white chalk, and some highlights in red chalk on both sides on blue paper 62.5 x 40 cm Round stamp with the monogram “MAUD” in the lower right corner, on the reverse Bears handwritten annotations on the reverse: Maurice Denis, likely “Marthe, my mother”; on the back: Maurice Denis, perhaps “The Sower” or “Corpus Christi Day,” depicting flower petals Provenance: Maurice Denis Collection Private collection Maurice Denis’s meeting with Henry Lerolle in 1891 marked an important milestone in the young artist’s development. A painter, collector, and music publisher, Lerolle opened the doors for Denis to an intellectual and artistic circle of rare richness, where painters, writers, and musicians mingled. It was in the refined yet warmly familial setting of this home that Denis met Lerolle’s daughters, among whom Yvonne Lerolle would hold a special place. Born in 1877, Yvonne is described by her contemporaries as a dreamy, reserved young woman of singular grace. Her world, as much as her appearance, seems to have captured Denis’s attention, and he showed her a steadfast affection from very early on: as early as 1893, he created a bookplate for her. The young woman thus belonged to this circle of close friends and family whose faces and presence enduringly nourished the painter’s imagination. This small sketch, which may depict Yvonne Lerolle as a young sower, fits particularly well within this narrative of intimacy and artistic exploration. Denis, in fact, placed great importance on the direct study of his models. For him, drawing was not merely a preparatory step: it was already a space for invention, where the figure sought itself, was simplified, and gradually found its expressive form.