Often seen as the father of modern sculpture, this exhibition focuses on the role of plaster and clay in the work of Auguste Rodin (1840-1917).
Rodin was born into a working-class family in Paris and was in fact rejected from the School of Fine Arts in Paris three times in 1857, so for many years he worked as a decorator. Much of his early work was heavily criticised for having no obvious meaning and it wasn’t until the 1880s that he stopped working at a factory and was given his own studio.
Although Rodin is best known for his bronze statues such as his ‘Age of Bronze’, this exhibition is dedicated to the large number of clay and plaster sculptures that he made as well. Since clay is far softer and easier to shape than metal, you’ll see that in his clay sculptures he experimented far more with things like poses and movements, making these clay works the closest you’ll come to Rodin’s personal thinking. You’ll notice that unlike many other artists at the time, Rodin didn't try to base his sculptures on religious mythology, but instead tried to model them on the human body and make them as realistic as possible.
Featuring over 200 works, this exhibition offers you the chance to see some of Rodin’s lesser-known pieces, many of which have never been seen outside France before.
"Rodin, it insists, is an artist who belongs here, in Tate Modern."
"Yet if Rodin looks different here, that’s good it makes us see his modernity."
"His imagination is so bold, so daring."
"Study for The Thinker, 1881 In focusing on works in plaster, The Making of Rodin recalls the sculptor’s own show at the Pavillon d’Alma in 1900, staged to coincide with the Universal Exhibition a display of plaster pieces designed to suggest the great man’s studio, except without the bustle, dust and assistants."