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a statue of a man and a woman sitting on a rockbronze sculpture of a man sitting on a rock with his head in his handsa bronze statue of a man holding a woman in his armsbronze sculpture of a man holding a woman in his armsbronze statue of a man and woman sitting on a rocka close up of a statue of a person with a hat on
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72 - RODIN Auguste, 1840–1917 The Kiss Second reduction, also kno…
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Estimate €300,000 - €500,000
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Description
RODIN Auguste, 1840–1917 The Kiss Second reduction, also known as reduction no. 4 Bronze group with a nuanced brown patina, F. BARBEDIENNE CASTING ARTISAN. On the front of the rock on the right: Rodin. On the lower part of the terrace, the foundry’s mark. Below, the number 23 and the letter K stamped near the base mounting. H: 59.6 cm – W: 36 cm – D: 37 cm Conceived in 1886, this version reduced in 1904; this bronze proof cast between 1914 and 1917. A letter of inclusion in the critical catalogue of the sculptor’s works by the Auguste Rodin Committee will be provided to the purchaser. Condition report available on request. Provenance: French collection, acquired in the early 1980s. Bibliography: - Antoinette Le Normand-Romain, Rodin et le bronze, catalogue of works held at the Musée Rodin, Volume I, Musée Rodin, Paris, 2007, similar model described and reproduced on p.162. - Rainer Crone, Siegfried Salzmann, Rodin, Eros and Creativity, Prestel, Munich, 1997, plate 1, pp.60–61, showing a bronze cast. - Monique Laurent, Rodin, Chêne Hachette, 1989; pp. 104–105 for a marble sculpture in the Rodin Museum. - John L. Tancock, The Sculpture of Auguste Rodin: The Collection of the Rodin Museum, Philadelphia, Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1976, for the photograph of the marble version of The Kiss at the 1898 Salon, p. 77. The Kiss is a group originally conceived by Rodin to feature on the Gates of Hell, commissioned by the French state in 1880. Completed in 1886, this iconic work, inspired by Dante’s Divine Comedy, depicts the couple Paolo and Francesca at the moment they discover their love. The Kiss was not selected for The Gates of Hell due to the sense of happiness it conveys, which did not fit with the tragic theme of The Gates. However, a more tormented version of this group can be found on the left pilaster of the gate. Kept by Rodin as a separate group, the plaster cast was exhibited in 1887, and The Kiss was later presented in a marble version at the 1898 Salon, the same year as the scandalous Balzac. The success of The Kiss was immediate, and the universal significance of the work led to the removal of the literary reference in the original title. The composition of this group is interesting in that it reveals itself in two stages. At first glance, the work appears fairly frontal and stable when viewed from the front, as it was designed to appear in The Gates of Hell. As the viewer moves, the spiral formed by the bodies draws the eye to seek out the hidden aspects of the work. One then discovers a more dynamic composition, punctuated by the diagonals formed by the movements of the two lovers. The reverse reveals splendid craftsmanship in the powerful rendering of the backs, which evokes Michelangelo, and finally reveals the faces kissing. The posture of the two entwined bodies exudes great tenderness, and the couple, lost in their pleasure, seem isolated from the world around them. This work, created after the more impassioned groups such as The Eternal Spring and I Am Beautiful, conveys an impression of maturity and calm from which a manifest strength emerges. With The Kiss, Auguste Rodin created an iconic work, a sensitive evocation of romantic passion. “When a good sculptor models human bodies, he represents not only the musculature, but also the life that warms them.” Auguste Rodin, Art, 1911
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About the sale MODERN ART
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Auction time 07/01/2026 at 2:00 PM
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