Rodin

Description

Recognized today as the greatest sculptor of all time, whose expressive style prefigured that of the modernist movement and abstract sculpture, Auguste Rodin (1840-1917) stirred up much controversy during his lifetime, and his sculptures often met with hostility and incomprehension from his peers. This monograph traces the life and work of the artist, from his youth and early poverty-stricken years of apprenticeship, to his most celebrated works - The Kiss, The Thinker, The Gates of Hell - which have become veritable icons; and from his passionate and tumultuous relationship with Camille Claudel, to his extraordinary studio, working methods, and sources of inspiration, and his final years marked by war and illness. Written by experts from the Musee Rodin in Paris, this richly illustrated volume includes drawings, watercolors, engravings, and archival documents, as well as specially commissioned photographs of Rodin's sculptures, completed by a chronology, bibliography, and history of the Musee Rodin-housed in the artist's former studio in the Hotel Biron. Providing insight into the many facets of his creative genius, this new edition offers the Musee Rodin's definitive reference on the artist and his oeuvre in an affordable, compact format.

Raphael Masson, former curator at the Musee Rodin and head of archives and the library, is chief heritage curator at the Chateau de Versailles. Veronique Mattiussi is an archivist at the Rodin museum in Paris, responsible for manuscripts. Jacques Vilain was the director of the Musee Rodin and the author of numerous works on the museum's collections.

"Informed and informative, thoughtful and thought-provoking, exceptionally well organized and presented, inherently fascination and consistently compelling from beginning to end, "Rodin" is a work of seminal and meticulous scholarship and unreservedly recommended for personal, community, college, and university Art History collections in general, and Auguste Rodin supplemental studies reading lists in particular." -Midwest Book Review "...Rodin is a beautiful book, and it ranges far afield for images of Rodin's great treasury of works. It also provides tantalizing glimpses into how the artist saw himself and how he did his work." -Chicago Tribune "In the event you can't hop on an airplane and visit the Musee Rodin in Paris, this definitive monograph is definitely the next best thing. Few people will argue with the claim that Auguste Rodin is one of the greatest sculptors who's ever lived. His expressive, wholly unique style, which blurs the line between modernist and abstract sculpture, birthed a shocking amount of celebrated works throughout his lifetime, including The Kiss, The Thinker, and The Gates of Hell. This richly illustrated monograph does a deep dive into Rodin's life and work, which during his lifetime, was often the subject of controversy." -Interview Magazine "