We retraced our steps to where we had passed the Musée Rodin on our way to explore the Hôtel des Invalides and had lunch in Le Café du Musée right across the street from the museum. I had checked this particular café out on the Internet before leaving on this trip as I wanted good French food at a reasonable price close to both of the places we were going that day. I had escargot and crème brûlée with a glass of Orangina. All were delicious. My friend was quite happy with what they were having too. It was one of our best meals away from the hotel.
I was familiar with The Thinker, The Kiss, and the Monument to the Burghers of Calais, but that was it prior to visiting this museum. In addition to the friend I was with, who had visited this museum before, the Concierge, the Head Waiter, and the Bartender at the hotel where we were staying had all said that this was a “must see”. They were right. I have gained a real appreciation for the works of Auguste Rodin.
Once we entered the grounds of the Musée Rodin, we began in the Rose Garden with Rodin’s most famous work, The Thinker. I loved being able to see (and photograph) it from every angle. I had a vague memory of getting a glimpse of The Thinker as our tour coach passed by the museum on my first time to Paris in 1984. But, unless the layout of the sculpture gardens was entirely different back then, I don’t see how I could have seen it. The whole place is bordered by tall walls other than the entrance gate.
We walked a little further into the garden to view the monumental bronze version of The Kiss before we backtracked to enter the mansion called the Hotel Biron. This mansion was built in the early 18th century. In 1908, Auguste Rodin rented four rooms on the ground floor. Other tenants included the writer Jean Cocteau, the painter Henri Matisse, and the dancer Isadora Duncan. By 1911, Rodin had taken over the entire building. He left the building and his works to the French state in 1916.
In the 1880s, the young female sculptor, Camille Claudel, joined Rodin’s studio. She became his assistant, rival, muse, and lover. They had a tumultuous relationship for 10 years, with her leaving him in 1893. She ended up declining mentally and was shut away in an asylum for 30 years. Many of her works are also on display in the museum, as Rodin desired them to be. In Room 16 of the 18 rooms displaying artistic works, are some of Camille’s finest pieces. I have included a photo of The Waltz here.
The first eight rooms are on the ground floor. The first two rooms are dedicated to Rodin’s early works, such as the Man With A Broken Nose and some of his Belgian landscapes before he settled into being mainly a sculptor.
One of the things I really liked about the museum was that it is still clearly a house and a house in which Rodin actually lived and worked. We could see his works displayed where he created them. That brought an extra dimension to it that isn’t found when someone’s art is displayed somewhere not connected to the artist.
In the third room is the sculpture titled the Age of Bronze (photo included). This is considered to be Rodin’s breakthrough piece, which earned him the commission for The Gates of Hell. In Room 5 are more lifesize versions of both The Kiss and The Thinker, which were originally created to be parts of The Gates of Hell until Rodin decided to keep them as stand-alone pieces.
Room 6 has a study for the Monument to the Burghers of Calais. The story behind it is quite interesting. After Calais was besieged by the English, King Edward III of England ordered the citizens of Calais to deliver six of their top citizens along with the keys to the city. These six men would be expected to be executed. The sculpture depicts the six men chosen as they are leaving the city to face their deaths, unaware that the English king plans to spare their lives.
The remaining two rooms on this floor deal with Rodin’s fame and his time at the Hotel Biron. I have included a photo of a work titled The Danaid.
Upstairs on the 1st floor, in addition to Camille Claudel’s The Waltz, I also took photos of The Cathedral in Room 10 and The Walking Man in Room 17. The Cathedral is a sculpture of two right hands entwining around each other while The Walking Man consists of legs and a torso, with no arms or head. It is thought to have possibly been cast from an earlier study for Saint John the Baptist Preaching. That sculpture is located in the same room as Age of Bronze. I have photos of the two works side by side here and I do think they are very similar.
Then we went back outside to the gardens to see the finished version of Monument to the Burghers of Calais, as well as The Three Shades, The Gates of Hell, and Adam and Eve. The Gates of Hell were said to have been inspired by the Gates of Paradise on the bronze doors of the Baptistry of San Giovanni in Florence (which I have seen and photographed on visits to Florence). Rodin based his work on the first section of The Divine Comedy, called Inferno.
We inspected the gift shop before heading back to where we had been dropped off. About two weeks later, I received my own version of The Kiss. This one was 6” (15.24cm) in height.
When we timed our walk to get to the places we wanted to visit, we tried to allow a little extra time just in case. Good thing. We got slightly turned around a couple of times and needed to backtrack just a bit. Fortunately we both realized we were heading the wrong way each time, so no arguments. Just a discussion about where we thought we were compared to where we actually were according to the map and an adjustment was made. It was the fact that we needed to cut through the park plus the construction going on in the park (necessitating some detours) that was throwing us off. Finally we got to where we could see the Eiffel Tower looming ahead. Then we knew to just walk towards that landmark.
We still had some wine back at the hotel, but I did pick up another bottle of Orangina at the grocers enroute. My friends were heading home to their respective countries on the train the next day (Saturday), but I would be remaining in Paris until the following Monday.
Next time –The Louvre
