The Age of Bronze

The Age of Bronze
L'âge d'airain (French)
The Age of Bronze, Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin, Germany (2006).
ArtistAuguste Rodin (1840–1917)
Year1877 (first exhibited)
TypeStatue
MediumBronze
DimensionsLife size

The Age of Bronze (French: L'âge d'airain) is a bronze statue by the French sculptor Auguste Rodin (1840–1917). The figure is of a life-size nude male, 72 in. (182.9cm) high. Rodin continued to produce casts of the statue for several decades after it was modeled in 1876.

The sculpture is famous for its extreme naturalism, which prompted suspicion that it was a lifecast. Rodin had a Belgian soldier pose for the statue, keeping photographs which survive (in the Rodin Museum). The pose partly derives from Michelangelo's Dying Slave in the Louvre Museum, which has the elbow raised above the head.[1] Rodin had studied Michelangelo's work on a trip to Italy, taking inspiration from his naturalism.[2]: 33  Today, there are numerous casts of the statue held in major museum across the world

History

The Age of Bronze was not Auguste Rodin's first life-size sculpture. Previously, he was creating a piece that was destroyed while moving studios titled Bacchante. Following the destruction of Bacchante, The Age of Bronze was meant to establish his reputation.[3] At this time, Rodin's goal was to study the nude and create naturalistic sculptures.[4] Rodin was unsatisfied with professional models due to their inability to convey the natural poses he wished to sculpt. To solve this problem, he employed a 22-year-old Belgian soldier, Auguste Neyt.[4] The work was also influenced by Rodin's visit to Italy in 1876, where he sought inspiration from Michelangelo's depiction of the human form.[2]: 33 

Originally, the figure held a spear, representing a warrior on the verge of defeat; however, Rodin removed the spear before displaying it to the public. This change drew attention to the figure's body and emotional state rather than the narrative content.[2]: 34 

Michelangelo, The Dying Slave 1513-1516
Statue "The Age of Bronze" by Auguste Rodin.
3D model, click to interact.

Reception

Rodin first exhibited the work under the title The Conquered Man at the Cercle Artistique in Brussels in January 1877. Belgian critics struggled to understand the absence of any identifiable subject matter, with one critic writing that Rodin had "forgotten only one thing and that is to explain his subject".[3]: 344  Another critic, attempting to make sense of the work, speculated that it represented "a man on the verge of suicide".[2]: 34  Belgian critics also raised suspicion that the work had been cast directly from the model.[3]

Similar suspicions were expressed several months later, when the work was exhibited at the Salon in Paris, under the title The Age of Bronze.[4] This suspicion benefited Rodin, though, because people were so eager to see this for themselves.[5] Critics expressed other misgivings about the work; one described the figure as "a sickly nude fellow" while another complained that it possessed "neither character nor beauty".[6]

Analysis and interpretations

The Age of Bronze, being Rodin's first successful large sculpture, represents a long period of effort, training, struggle, and research.[4] Much of the scholarship on the work examines the narrative ambiguity of the work, analyzing the pose of the figure for its psychological evocations. The weight shifting to the right side, the relaxing of the lips, and the way the head sits upon the shoulders, invite speculation about the man's suffering and inner life.[2]: 34 

Scholars have also examined the work in relation to Rodin's goals of making naturalistic sculpture.[2]: 33  The influence of Michelangelo's Dying Slave on the work has commonly been interpreted in terms of this aim.[2]: 33  Scholars have also pointed to differences between the two sculptures, describing Rodin's figure as more agile, fluid, and naturalistic than Michelangelo's more rigidly defined work.[2]: 33 

Casts

Casts of the statue can be found in many museums, including:

Institution City Country
Albright–Knox Art Gallery[7]Buffalo, New YorkUnited States
Alte NationalgalerieBerlinGermany
Museum FolkwangEssenGermany
SchlossmuseumWeimarGermany
Chiado MuseumLisbonPortugal
Cleveland Museum of ArtCleveland, OhioUnited States
Columbus Museum of ArtColumbus, OhioUnited States
Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek[8][9]CopenhagenDenmark
Nationalmuseum[10]StockholmSweden
Honolulu Museum of ArtHonolulu, HawaiiUnited States
Hugh Lane GalleryDublinIreland
Instituto Ricardo BrennandRecifeBrazil
Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts, Stanford UniversityStanford, CaliforniaUnited States
KunstmuseumThe HagueNetherlands
Leeds Art GalleryLeedsEngland
Lycée Rodin, cour d'honneur[11]ParisFrance
Maryhill Museum of ArtMaryhill, WashingtonUnited States
Metropolitan Museum of ArtNew York City, New YorkUnited States
Middelheim Open Air Sculpture Museum[12]AntwerpBelgium
Minneapolis Institute of ArtsMinneapolis, MinnesotaUnited States
Musée d'Orsay[13]ParisFrance
Museum of Fine Arts of LyonLyonFrance
Musée Rodin[14]ParisFrance
Museo SoumayaMexico CityMexico
Museum of Fine ArtsBudapestHungary
Nasher Sculpture Center[15]Dallas, TexasUnited States
National Gallery of ArtWashington, D.C.United States
National Gallery of CanadaOttawa, OntarioCanada
National Museum of Western Art[16]TokyoJapan
New Orleans Museum of ArtNew Orleans, LouisianaUnited States
Princeton University Art MuseumPrinceton, New JerseyUnited States
Rodin MuseumPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaUnited States
Tokyo University of the Arts, The University Art Museum[17]TokyoJapan
Tokyo Fuji Art Museum[18]TokyoJapan
Victoria and Albert MuseumLondonEngland
Museu Nacional d'Art de CatalunyaBarcelonaSpain
Burrell CollectionGlasgowScotland
Legion of HonorSan FranciscoUnited States
Queensland Art Gallery[19]BrisbaneAustralia
Galleria Nazionale d'Arte ModernaRomeItaly
Manchester Art Gallery[20]ManchesterUnited Kingdom
Chrysler Museum of Art[21]Norfolk, VirginiaUnited States

See also

References

  1. ↑ "The Age of Bronze, 1876". Princeton Art Museum.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Elsen, Albert E; Aldaheff, Albert (1981). Rodin Rediscovered. Washington: National Gallery of Art. ISBN 978-0894680007.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  3. 1 2 3 Tancock, John L (1979). The Sculpture of Auguste Rodin: The Collection of the Rodin Museum, Philadelphia. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art. pp. 342–348. ISBN 978-0876330180.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  4. 1 2 3 4 Lampert, Catherine; Romain, Antoinette (2006). Rodin: His Art and His Inspiration. Harry N Abrams. p. 206. ISBN 978-1903973660.
  5. ↑ Ressouni-Demigneux, Karim (2008). Les grands scandales de l'histoire de l'art: cinq siècles de ruptures, de censures et de chefs-d'œuvre. Paris: Beaux Arts éditions. p. 126.
  6. ↑ Varnedoe, Kirk (2001). Rodin: a magnificent obsession. London : Merrell. p. 149. ISBN 978-1858941431.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  7. ↑ "L'Age D'Airain (Age Of Bronze) > Search Our Fine Art Collection > Collection > Albright-Knox Art Gallery". Archived from the original on 21 May 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  8. ↑ "Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek by Brian McMorrow". Archived from the original on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
  9. ↑ "Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen, Denmark". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
  10. ↑ "Nationalmuseum, Stockholm". Archived from the original on 30 November 2021. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
  11. ↑ fr:Lycée Rodin
  12. ↑ "05 Auguste Rodin (France) - MIDDELHEIM MUSEUM". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  13. ↑ "Musée d'Orsay: Auguste Rodin The Bronze Age". Archived from the original on 22 August 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  14. ↑ "The Age of Bronze - Rodin Museum". Archived from the original on 1 October 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  15. ↑ Database (undated). "Auguste Rodin" Archived June 13, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Nasher Sculpture Center. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  16. ↑ "Auguste Rodin - The Age of Bronze - Collection - The National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo". Archived from the original on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  17. ↑ "［ID:7584］ 青銅時代 ： 収蔵品情報 - 収蔵品データベース - 東京藝術大学大学美術館". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  18. ↑ "Profile of Works - TOKYO FUJI ART MUSEUM". Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  19. ↑ "On Display in QAG Sculpture Garden". Archived from the original on 9 April 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  20. ↑ {{https://www.bing.com/search?pglt=41&q=age+of+bronze+manchester+art+gallery&cvid=f29f0a44693a495fa43b5c9e034c0250&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIGCAEQABhAMgYIAhAAGEAyBggDEAAYQDIGCAQQABhAMgYIBRAAGEAyBggGEAAYQDIGCAcQABhAMgYICBAAGEAyCAgJEOkHGPxV0gEJMTc1MzZqMGoxqAIAsAIA&FORM=ANNAB1&PC=U531}}
  21. ↑ "Chrysler Museum European Painting and Sculpture Collection". Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.

Bibliography

  • Le Normand-Romain, Antoinette; Judrin, Claude; Vassalo, I. (1997). Vers l'âge d'airain, Rodin en Belgique: Exposition. Paris: Musée Rodin editions. ISBN 978-2-901428-60-2.
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