Auguste Rodin at the National Gallery of Art

Youtube ^ | August 11 | MT

[mft112345]

We enjoyed the Rodin exhibit at the National Gallery of Art and made this brief video of his work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmSuNoye3-M

Before viewing his work, we heard a lecture regarding his relationship with his model and student, Camille Claudel. We learned she had died in a mental institution following their break up.

[mft112345]

Can anyone recommend a good biography on these two artists?

[iceskater]

Nice. Thanks. Reminds that I need to schedule a trip to the NGA soon.

Pinging you Joe. Maybe you know of a biography for mft??

[Joe 6-pack]

I can't think of any specific bios off-hand, but there was a pretty good movie about 20 years ago about the life of Claudel simply titled, Camille Claudel, which is worth watching if you can find a copy.

[nikos1121]

Rodin was best of friends with another very popular artist of the time, Eugene Carriere. Rodin gave his eulogy. In fact, if you go back and look at what was written on Carriere you realize that he was a giant at the time and mentor to other great artists, Gauguin in particular.

[AlexW]

I guess it was about 15 years ago that the Thinker was
on loan, and in the front lawn of the Dixon Art
Gardens and Museum in Memphis, where I was a member.

About eight years ago, I visited the Rodin Museum in
Paris.
It is well worth the visit, and a nice place to have lunch
outside. It is also within walking distance of the Eiffel Tower.

[Tijeras_Slim]

You gotta love Rodan, not only did he fight monsters with Godzilla, but he was a great sculptor.

[BunnySlippers]

I worked for the man who had the largest collection of Rodins in the world. It was really nifty having an art gallery in the office.

The rest of his collection is at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

[TomOnTheRun]

You have fantastic taste!

If you just want a good overview of the life and work of Rodin I can suggest Rodin: The Shape of Genius by Ms. Ruth Butler. If you need a foundation to build off of it is quite good. It is not the book for people that already know about him and want to go in-depth.

There aren't a lot of really good biographies of Camille Claudel. There was a burst of feminist (not-the-bad-sort) interest in her in the 80's but the bios lacked enough information about some things at that time. (She destroyed a lot of her own sculptures and notes.) Good new secondary sources and recovered bits that were thought to be lost will probably lead to some new bios in a few years.

There was an excellent movie called Camille Claudel in 1988 or 89. It had Gérard Depardieu as Rodin. It got a lot of critical acclaim.

You can also view a number of English language educational films about him for free on the Canal+ educational site. Here is a good 26 minute one all about the "Gates of Hell" sculpture for example: http://canal-educatif.fr/Video/Arts/014-Porte-Enfer-Rodin/Anglais/Gates-Hell-Rodin.htm

[TomOnTheRun]

I made that movie link clickable here. At least I hope I did. I'm not the best with HTML.

[Williams]

Don’t forget there is a Rodin museum in Philadelphia.

[The Great RJ]

The Rodin Museum in Paris is roughly across the street from Les Invalides, Napoleon’s tomb.

[Dr. Ursus]

We missed the museum but will definitely be going on our next trip.

[Erasmus]

The Sculptor's Curse:

"F--- you, and the horse you Rodin on."

[monocle]

One of the few good things about France is the Rodin museum in Paris.