Rodin: In His Own Words, Selections from the Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Foundation

By the latter part of his life, Auguste Rodin had achieved success on an international scale, in large part because he was a true self-promoter and always ready and able to speak about himself and his work. By 1900, Rodin was revered by his contemporaries; they sought his opinions and views on art with great respect and adoration. Rodin’s perspective was disseminated through several books published under his own name and in countless letters, as well as in works by biographers and interviewers. These sources present a vibrant image of the great sculptor and his work.    

Because Rodin was so clear as to what he wanted viewers to know about his work, each of the 35 pieces in Rodin: In His Own Words was accompanied by translated quotes about the specific work or his art in general.  The exhibition included letters, books, portraits of Rodin by others, and a ten-step demonstration of the lost wax casting process – all of which helped contextualize the art representing the span of his career.

The exhibition was curated by Amy Silvey and Danna Kay.

 

Rodin: In His Own Words visited twenty venues:

The Hyde Collection Art Museum
Glens Falls, New York
January 18, 2004 - April 11, 2004
Brunnier Art Museum
Iowa State University
Ames, Iowa 
January 9, 2007 - April 29, 2007 
Federal Reserve Board
Washington, D. C.
May 3, 2004 - August 20, 2004 
Gibbes Museum of Art
Charleston, South Carolina
May 25, 2007 - August 12, 2007
Middlebury College Museum of Art
Middlebury, Vermont
September 14, 2004 - December 5, 2004
Oglethorpe University Museum of Art
Atlanta, Georgia
September 8, 2007 - November 17, 2007
Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art
Auburn University
Auburn, Alabama
January 4, 2005 - March 13, 2005
Howard Community College Art Gallery
Columbia, Maryland 
December 8, 2007 - February 17, 2008
Pensacola Museum of Art
Pensacola, Florida
April 8, 2005 - June 18, 2005
Hillstrom Museum of Art
Gustavus Adolphus College
St. Peter, Minnesota 
March 8, 2008 - April 22, 2008
University of Kentucky Art Museum
Lexington, Kentucky
July 10, 2005 - September 18, 2005
Evansville Museum of Arts, History & Science
Evansville, Indiana 
May 10, 2008 - August 17, 2008
The South Texas Institute for the Arts
Corpus Christi, Texas
October 6, 2005 - December 31, 2005
Las Cruces Museum of Art  
Las Cruces, New Mexico  
September 5, 2008 - November 22, 2008
Philip and Muriel Berman Museum of Art
Ursinus College
Collegeville, Pennsylvania
January 21, 2006 - April 9, 2006
Alden B. Dow Museum of Science and Art  
Midland Center for the Arts, Midland, Michigan
December 13, 2008 - February 22, 2009
Dennos Museum Center
Northwestern Michigan College
Traverse City, Michigan 
April 29, 2006 - August 6, 2006
Stamford Museum & Nature Center  
Stamford, Connecticut
March 7, 2009 - May 24, 2009
Whatcom Museum
Bellingham, Washington
August 26, 2006 - December 10, 2006
Loyola University Museum of Art  
Chicago, Illinois
June 13, 2009 - August 16, 2009

 

"I cannot express how excellently powerful the viewing experience was for me. I want to thank your foundation not only for providing the...resource[s] to make things like this happen, but more importantly, the vision of the life-giving qualities they provide viewers."