- 150
Auguste Rodin
Estimate
400,000 - 600,000 USD
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Description
- Auguste Rodin
- Balzac, étude drapée dite avec un capuchon et un jabot de dentelle
- Inscribed A. Rodin, numbered No. 4/8, dated © By Musée Rodin 1984 and inscribed with the foundry mark E. Godard Fond.
- Bronze
- Height: 44 in.; 111.8 cm
Provenance
Musée Rodin, Paris
B.G. Cantor, New York (acquired from the above in 1985)
Bruton Gallery, New York (acquired from the above)
Acquired from the above by the present owner in 1990
B.G. Cantor, New York (acquired from the above in 1985)
Bruton Gallery, New York (acquired from the above)
Acquired from the above by the present owner in 1990
Literature
Cécile Goldscheider, "La genèse d'une oeuvre: Le Balzac de Rodin" in La Revue des Arts, Paris, March 1952, no. 13, illustration of the plaster p. 44
Albert E. Elsen, Rodin & Balzac: Rodin's sculptural studies for the Monument to Balzac, Los Angeles, 1973, fig. 35, illustration of the plaster p. 34
John L. Tancock, The Sculpture of Auguste Rodin, Philadelphia, 1976, pp. 441 & 459
Kirk T. Varndoe, "In Detail: Rodin and Balzac" in Portfolio Magazine of Fine Arts, New York, 1982, illustration of the plaster p. 97
Monique Laurent, ed., Rodin (exhibition catalogue), Fondation Pierre Gianadda, Martigny, 1984, no. 55, illustration of another cast p. 103
Cécile Goldscheider, Auguste Rodin, La Statue de Balzac: étapes de sa réalisation, Paris, 1985, p. 9
Ruth Butler, Rodin: The Shape of Genius, New Haven, 1993, illustration of the plaster pl. 121
Antoinette Le Normand-Romain, 1898: le 'Balzac' de Rodin (exhibition catalogue), Musée Rodin, Paris, 1998, fig. 144, illustration of another cast p. 24
Marie-Françoise Sassier, Le Balzac de Rodin, Tours, 1999, no. 27, illustration of another cast p. 43
Antoinette Le Normand-Romain, The Bronzes of Rodin, Catalogue of Works in the Musée Rodin, vol. I, Paris, 2007, no. S.1369, illustration of another cast pp. 179-80
Albert E. Elsen, Rodin & Balzac: Rodin's sculptural studies for the Monument to Balzac, Los Angeles, 1973, fig. 35, illustration of the plaster p. 34
John L. Tancock, The Sculpture of Auguste Rodin, Philadelphia, 1976, pp. 441 & 459
Kirk T. Varndoe, "In Detail: Rodin and Balzac" in Portfolio Magazine of Fine Arts, New York, 1982, illustration of the plaster p. 97
Monique Laurent, ed., Rodin (exhibition catalogue), Fondation Pierre Gianadda, Martigny, 1984, no. 55, illustration of another cast p. 103
Cécile Goldscheider, Auguste Rodin, La Statue de Balzac: étapes de sa réalisation, Paris, 1985, p. 9
Ruth Butler, Rodin: The Shape of Genius, New Haven, 1993, illustration of the plaster pl. 121
Antoinette Le Normand-Romain, 1898: le 'Balzac' de Rodin (exhibition catalogue), Musée Rodin, Paris, 1998, fig. 144, illustration of another cast p. 24
Marie-Françoise Sassier, Le Balzac de Rodin, Tours, 1999, no. 27, illustration of another cast p. 43
Antoinette Le Normand-Romain, The Bronzes of Rodin, Catalogue of Works in the Musée Rodin, vol. I, Paris, 2007, no. S.1369, illustration of another cast pp. 179-80
Condition
This work is in excellent condition. Bronze with rich black patina. The bronze is sound. There is very little wear to the patina and just a light build-up of dust in the crevices. There are two tiny spots of patina loss on the fold in the drape that hangs over the figure's right shoulder.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
Catalogue Note
According to Albert Elsen, "The artist himself regarded his Monument to Balzac as his most important and daring work, 'the sum of my whole life, result of a whole lifetime of effort, the mainspring of my esthetic theory. From the day of its conception, I was a changed man'" (quoted in Albert E. Elsen, Rodin, New York, 1963, p. 89).
The photographer Edward Steichen was also highly fascinated by Rodin's Balzac and made it a recurring subject in his photographs (see figs. 1 & 2).
The photographer Edward Steichen was also highly fascinated by Rodin's Balzac and made it a recurring subject in his photographs (see figs. 1 & 2).