2915 - Auguste Rodin (1840, Paris – 1917, Meudon), after

Auguste Rodin (1840, Paris – 1917, Meudon), after "L'âge d'airain." Original title Bronze, patinated in shades of green and dark tones. Artist's mark; Posthumous, contemporary cast (early 21st century) based on Rodin’s significant nude figure, for which he created the model in 1875–76 and which is considered the beginning of modern sculpture. It marked the breakthrough for the sculptor, who became famous overnight. He created an ambiguous figure whose posture and facial expression allowed for multiple subjective interpretations. When he exhibited the statue at the Salon in Paris in 1877, it caused a scandal due to its striking realism, especially since the overwhelmed art-loving public was confronted with a nude body devoid of any attributes or allegorical context. When Rodin presented the sculpture again at the Salon in 1880, the French government purchased the plaster model; from this, a first bronze cast was made, which was installed in the Jardin du Luxembourg in 1884 (and has been in the Musée du Luxembourg since 1890). H. 100 cm. Original casts are located, among other places, in the Nationalgalerie in Berlin, the Musée Rodin in Paris, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Provenance: from the Kai Wünsche Collection, Die Weisse Villa, Hamburg. After Auguste Rodin (1840–1917). Patinated bronze. Inscribed “A. Rodin.” Early 21st-century posthumous contemporary cast based on Rodin’s bronze.