“Head of a Sleeping Baby (Tete d’enfant endormi)” by Aimé-Jules Dalou

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Head of a Sleeping Baby (Tete d’enfant endormi)

Aimé-Jules Dalou (1897-1902)

Marble

11¼ inches (29cm)

Robert Bowman

Signed “DALOU”

"Tete d’enfant endormi was modelled during Dalou’s stay in England. It was conceived as part of the terracotta monument commissioned by Queen Victoria in memory of her grandchildren. The monument is now in the Private Royal Chapel at Windsor Castle as part of the Royal collection and is signed and dated 1878 [continued below]." — Robert Bowman

Bronze version

Robert Bowman has most generously given permission to use in the Victorian Web information, images, and text from his catalogues. The copyright on text and images from these catalogues remains, of course, with him. Readers should consult the website of the Robert Bowman Gallery to obtain information about recent exhibitions and to order catalogues. [GPL]

The head of the baby was first exhibited as an autonomous work at the Paris Salon of 1891, over a decade after Dalou had returned to France. The delicate, lifelike modelling and charming appearance of the sculpture made it a popular work for collectors and it was cast in bronze in two sizes. The marble version, with its subtle carving and smooth undulations of the baby’s flesh make it one of the artist’s most appealing works.

Bibliography

Aimé-Jules Dalou (1897-1902). Online exhibition catalogue. London: Bowman Sculpture, 2014. Web. 29 November 2014.

Last modified 29 November 2014