Henri Rogerol (attributed to), Young Girl with Bonnet (circa 1920)

HENRI-ÉMILE ROGEROL (Douai, 1877-1947) Young Girl in a Bonnet. Circa 1920. Plaster. H. 31.5. Born in Douai, Henri Rogerol attended the École des Beaux-Arts in Douai from 1890 to 1892, where he studied painting and sculpture. He then spent six years, first as an apprentice and later as a modeller, at the Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres in Paris. In 1902, he returned to Douai and started a large workshop producing ornamental sculptures for private and public buildings, later expanding into ceramic production. Concurrently, he created his own sculptures and paintings that were exhibited in official salons. Rogerol was a brilliant sculptor who left Paris to run a large business and create sculptures and paintings at his own pace in his hometown of Douai - and let’s not forget that Douai had centuries of tradition and sculptural expertise. This magnificent bust of a young girl wearing a winter hat and a coat with the collar turned up at the back is unsigned but has provenance from Douai and is almost certainly by Rogerol.