Study of Honoré de Balzac

1891–1892
(French, 1840–1917)
Overall: 52.7 x 39.4 x 32.4 cm (20 3/4 x 15 1/2 x 12 3/4 in.)
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Description

In 1891 Rodin was commissioned to create a monument honoring the celebrated French writer Honoré de Balzac. The figure evolved through multiple stages over a seven-year period as Rodin explored different methods of conveying the author’s genius and personality. This bust is a study for the first version, in which the full figure stands upright with legs apart, arms crossed over his corpulent belly. Rodin’s unglamorous portrayal of a national hero shocked the public accustomed to idealized figures in public monuments. The final design was even more intensely criticized because Rodin reduced the body to a powerful, abstract mass intended to convey the symbolic essence of the writer’s creative vitality.
Study of Honoré de Balzac

Study of Honoré de Balzac

1891–1892

Auguste Rodin

(French, 1840–1917)
France, 19th century

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