A pioneer of sculpture in a woman’s voice.

Lucienne Antoinette Heuvelmans was a trailblazing French sculptress, celebrated for both her remarkable artistic talent and her role in breaking gender barriers in the early 20th-century art world. The daughter of Osval Heuvelmans, a Belgian draughtsman and cabinetmaker, she began her artistic training in the family workshop on the Faubourg Saint-Antoine, before studying under Denys Puech at the Académie Julian in Paris.

In 1902, Heuvelmans was admitted to the prestigious École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, shortly after the school had opened its studios to women. There, she continued her training under renowned sculptors Laurent Marqueste and Emmanuel Hannaux. After six determined attempts, she made history in 1911 by becoming the first woman ever to win the Grand Prix de Rome in sculpture—a landmark achievement, widely hailed in the press as a dazzling victory for feminism.

From 1912 to 1914, Heuvelmans studied at the Villa Medici in Rome under the directorship of Albert Besnard. During her residency, she completed her first major marble sculpture, Le Cercle militaire (The Military Circle), and created a portrait bust of fellow Prix de Rome laureate, the composer Lili Boulanger.

Upon her return to France, Heuvelmans was appointed as a drawing instructor and established her studio at the Hôtel de Rohan-Guéméné. She regularly exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Français, where she received a bronze medal in 1921, and also participated in the Salon des Artistes Décorateurs at the Grand Palais. In 1926, she was named a Chevalier of the Légion d’Honneur by the Ministry of Fine Arts—an exceptional distinction for a female artist of her era.

Later in her career, Heuvelmans focused increasingly on religious sculpture, notably contributing to the decoration of the church of Notre-Dame d’Espérance in Paris. Though her public activity ceased during the Second World War, her artistic legacy endured. She passed away in 1944, having generously bequeathed her studio and collection to the church she had so passionately served.

Literature :

• RIVIÈRE, A. (dir.), Sculpture’elles : les sculpteurs femmes du XVIIIe siècle à nos jours, catalogue d’exposition, Boulogne-Billancourt, Musée des Années Trente, 12 mai-2 octobre 2011, Paris, Somogy, 2011
• BELGHERBI, E. Avant l’exposition : la formation des sculptrices à Paris à la fin du XIXe siècle, session de posters, colloque WAS – Women Artists Shows·Salons·Societies : expositions collectives de femmes artistes 1876-1976, Musée du Jeu de Paume, Paris, 8-9 décembre 2017 [non-publié]
• BENEZIT, E. Dictionnaire des peintres, sculpteurs, dessinateurs et graveurs. Paris: Librairie Gründ, 1961. Vol.7. p. 22.