Yvonne Serruys, Woman with a Haircut or Hebe (circa 1912)

YVONNE SERRUYS (Menin 1873 - Paris 1953) Woman with a Cup or Hebe. Circa 1912. Bronze, gilded patina. H. 44 cm (with base 53 cm) Yvonne Serruys exhibited a version of Woman with a Cup / Hebe in marble in 1911 (now in Menin, municipal museum), and then around 1912 the Hébrard foundry produced a bronze edition. Some of these bronzes have a complete bronze base with four putti at the corners holding festoons, while others do not have this base. Similarly, in terms of patina, some have a gilded patina, while others have a very dark, almost black patina. The examples with the base adorned with putti are imposing, but to be honest, it is a bit too much and detracts from the purity of the figure itself. This example is accompanied by a simple wooden base, probably made of ebony. Serruys is an important Belgian-French sculptor. In 2023, an exhibition was dedicated to her in Menin with a catalogue written by art historian Marjan Sterckx. Perhaps the most important goal of Serruys's art was to renew the figures and forms of antiquity to create a "new woman, " and with her sculpture Woman with a Cup / Hebe, modelled after a young woman, Gisèle, who worked for Serruys and her husband, she achieved great success. The bracelet, very well made of copper and silver, is a later personalization.