Auguste Rodin’s The Thinker is classic sculpture that captures the zeitgeist of modern times after the Industrial Revolution.
Auguste Rodin was the greatest artist of his era
François Auguste René Rodin was born in Paris, France on November 12, 1840. He died in Meudon, a suburb of Paris, on November 17, 1917.
Rodin was the greatest artist of his era. The emotional aesthetics in his naturalist style broke the mold of traditionally heroic figurative sculpture.
In the same way that Impressionists moved to capture the light and feeling of their real world subjects, Rodin captured the emotions of his subjects through the play of light and shadow on roughly textured surfaces.
Rodin was a master of clay modeling. Plaster casts were used to capture otherwise ephemeral clay forms. Assistants then cast or carved Rodin’s compositions in various sizes and mediums.
Rodin was an early proponent of multiples. He was a early adopter of the factory approach to making art which culminated in Andy Warhol’s Factory of the 1960s.
Rodin had a very good resume, but he was not accepted by the Parisian art establishment in his lifetime.
Auguste Rodin’s Famous Works
Rodin’s most famous works are The Burghers of Calais (1884), The Kiss (1889) and The Thinker (Le Penseur, 1902).
Auguste Rodin Museums
The Musée Rodin in Paris, France houses the world’s preeminent Rodin collection.
There is a Rodin Museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Both the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Brooklyn Museum in New York City have significant Rodin collections.
Auguste Rodin in New York City
Rodin100 is a worldwide series of major Rodin exhibitions in 2017 commemorating the centennial of Rodin’s death.
Rodin at the Met is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Midtown, Manhattan from September 16, 2017 – January 15, 2018.
Rodin at the Brooklyn Museum: The Body in Bronze is at the Brooklyn Museum in Prospect Park, Brooklyn from November 17, 2017 – April 22, 2018.