Rodin: A Biography

François-Auguste-René Rodin was regarded by many in his lifetime as the successor of Michelangelo. His career spanned a epoch scarred by the Franco-Prussian War, Commune, fall of Napoleon III, and World War I. Despite civic calamity, he thrived with luminous contemporaries like Bonnard, Degas, Monet, Renoir, Pissarro, Gauguin, Cézanne, Matisse, Hugo, Zola, Mirbeau, Proust, Debussy, Saint-Saëns, Fauré, Chabrier, Bizet, Lalo, Gounod, and Ofenbach. How these legends flourished in adversity is the great paradox of the period. The age, celebrated by expositions and landmarks like the controversial 300m Eiffel tower, heralded innovation that broadened travel and extended publicity. Rodin was wise enough to leverage both to become an international celebrity. His century-old legacy remains fresh, vital and expressive: in many respects it's still unsurpassed. This amply illustrated text explores Rodin's provenance, training, influences, bohemian lifestyle, amorous liaisons, travels, influences, works, altier production, contemporaries, publicity, and honors in a lucid narrative of a seminal artist and his age. Highly recommended.

I think the author has done a heroic job of pulling together all the scraps of information about Rodin's life into a single tome. Rodin himself would have approved of the characterization of himself as a misunderstood genius who worked without compromise or the least hint of encouragement until he was almost 40. But at over 600 pages in length (of which the first 80 page cover his family history and the first 35 years of his life), this is a book for the serious student or the masochist. Rodin is carefully described in context with the turn of the 20th century artist community he lived in and the rich society patrons who bought his art, the letters they wrote, the parties they attended. A story told in an enormous amount of detail with a single unwavering spotlight.

It is hard to believe that this book did not engender more attention or acclaim. It is absolutely the best I have ever read on Rodin the man and the artist. His life and background is presented in remarkable detail and photographs of many of his most famous works are presented. His views on religion, love, sex, France, art - everything is here for the asking. His workings and interaction with the many artists are captured, and this is especially important since this was a particularly vibrant and intellectually fertile time in the history of art. His love for France and for all things French is expressed over and over. His letters give us a glimpse into the "real" man, the artist who finally married his lover toward the end of their lives. He was the man who challenged the world, leading the army of Romanticism forward, only to be called old-fashioned and out of date when he refused to change with the times. What a life and what a book!