Roland Dorgelès
Roland Dorgelès | |
|---|---|
Roland Dorgelès in 1923 | |
| Born | Roland Lecavelé 15 June 1885 |
| Died | 18 March 1973 (aged 87) |
| Occupation | Author |
Roland Dorgelès (French pronunciation: [dɔʁʒəlɛs]; 15 June 1885 – 18 March 1973)[1] was a French novelist and a member of the Académie Goncourt.
Born in Amiens, Somme, under the name Roland Lecavelé (he adopted the pen name Dorgelès to commemorate visits to the spa town of Argelès), he spent his childhood in Paris.
Dorgelès served as a juror with Florence Meyer Blumenthal in awarding the Prix Blumenthal, a grant given between 1919 and 1954 to painters, sculptors, decorators, engravers, writers and musicians.[2]
Works
Dorgelès is best remembered for the Prix Femina-winning World War I novel [[Les Croix de Bois|Wooden crosses (Les croix de bois)]]. He began writing the novel during his time serving in both the French infantry and air force, eventually publishing in 1919.[3][4] An English translation was published by William Heinemann in 1920. The novel was later adapted into a 1932 film of the same name, which was well-received.[5]
Joachim-Raphaël Boronali alias
Joachim-Raphaël Boronali was a fictitious Italian painter, created by Dorgelès as part of a prank on the art world. Dorgelès created paintings on canvas by tying a paintbrush to the tail of a donkey named Lolo.[6] One of those paintings, Et le soleil s'endormit sur l'Adriatique (Sunset Over the Adriatic) was submitted to the 1910 Salon des Indépendants and attributed to the 'excessivist' Genoan painter Boronali. It was exhibited and eventually sold for 400 francs (~ $1400 in 2024 value), at which point Dorgelès revealed the hoax.[4] The painting was later donated by Dorgelès to the Orphelinat des Arts.[7] The painting forms part of the permanent collection at l'Espace culturel Paul Bédu (Milly-la-Forêt).
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Et le soleil s'endormit sur l'Adriatique (Sunset Over the Adriatic), 54 × 81 cm, painting made by donkey (Lolo) assisted by Roland Dorgelès.
See also
References
- ^ Obituaries on File: A-R. Facts on File. 1979. p. 163.
- ^ "Florence Meyer Blumenthal". Jewish Women's Archive, Michele Siegel.
- ^ "Dorgelès, Roland / 1.0 / encyclopedic". 1914-1918-Online (WW1) Encyclopedia. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
- ^ a b Hoh, Anchi (27 March 2017). "Art & War: Les Croix de bois | 4 Corners of the World". The Library of Congress. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
- ^ French, Philip (26 April 2015). "Wooden Crosses review – Philip French on Raymond Bernard's first world war classic". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
- ^ "Lolo the Donkey and the Avant-Garde That Never Was: Part 1". Michigan Quarterly Review. 30 March 2016. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
- ^ Daniel Groinowski, Aux commencements du rire moderne. L'esprit fumiste, José Corti, Paris, 1997, p.296.