"You have to dominate the material, not let the material dominate you."
19c French Sculpture
How do you make a sculptural monument—in stone—that captures the transitory, the fleeting aspects of modern life?
A moment’s monument, Medardo Rosso, Ecce puer ...
Does a statue need to include arms or a head to be considered complete? Rodin clearly doesn’t think so.
Auguste Rodin, The Walking Man
This aborted commission was meant for a museum that was to be on the site of the Musée d’Orsay—where it now stands.
Auguste Rodin, The Gates of Hell
The wild dancing nymphs on the exterior of the Opéra had little in common with the ballerinas performing there.
Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux, Dance
The artist’s biography has sometimes overshadowed her radical and serious achievements as a sculptor.
Camille Claudel, The Age of Maturity
When Rodin received the commission for this monument in Calais, he was expected to produce one figure—not six.
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