As soon as Rodin received the commission to portray the French author Honoré de Balzac, he immersed

As soon as Rodin received the commission to portray the French author Honoré de Balzac, he immersed himself in extensive research on his subject’s appearance. Rodin made more than fifty studies of Balzac, including portrait heads and clothed and nude figures. As the work evolved, he began to move away from a realistic vision of the author and toward a more conceptual evocation of his creative genius: “For me, Balzac is… a creator, and this is the idea I would wish to make understood in my statue.”Posted by Rebekah PollockAuguste Rodin (French, 1840-1917). Balzac, Nude Study C, Large Version (Balzac, étude de nu, grand modèle), 1892-1893; cast 1972. Bronze, 49 7/8 x 19 ¼ x 26 ½ in., 148 lb. (126.7 x 48.9 x 67.3 cm). | Balzac, Smiling Head, known as Head I (Balzac, tête souriante dite Tête I), ca. 1893; cast 1980. Bronze, 6 5/8 x 5 ½ x 5 ¾ in. (16.8 x 14.0 x 14.6 cm) | Balzac, Final Study for the Head (Balzac, dernière étude pour la tête), 1897; cast date unknown. Bronze, 7 ½ x 6 1/8 x 6 ½ in. (19.1 x 15.6 x 16.5 cm). | Balzac, Monumental Head (Balzac, tête monumentale), 1898; cast 1979. Bronze, 20 x 17 ½ x 16 in. (50.8 x 44.5 x 40.6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation, 85.198. Creative Commons-BY -- source link

More pics about