Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917). <em>Orpheus (Orphée)</em>, 1908, cast 1980. Bronze, 57 1/2 x 30 x 49 1/4 in. (146.1 x 76.2 x 125.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation, 84.75.3. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 84.75.3_SL1.jpg)

Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917). Orpheus (Orphée), 1908, cast 1980. Bronze, 57 1/2 x 30 x 49 1/4 in. (146.1 x 76.2 x 125.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation, 84.75.3. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 84.75.3_SL1.jpg)

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What is up with this statue?

This is Orpheus, by Auguste Rodin. It shows a moment in the story of Orpheus, an amazingly gifted musician and singer. You'll see he's holding his lyre, a stringed instrument.

When his wife Eurydice died, he went down to the underworld and convinced the gods of the underworld by playing and singing for them to release her and send her back to the living world. But he had to promise not to look back as he and Eurydice went back up to the land of the living. He forgot, and looked back to check on Eurydice thus losing her to the underworld again, permanently.

Can I touch it?

Unfortunately, Rodin's Orpheus can't be touched (nor can anything else in the galleries!) but I can understand how all the varied textures making touching a temptation.

Rodin's use of surfaces in his bronze sculptures is so distinctive. That roughness was a very unusual approach at the time, when fine art sculpture was expected to look smooth and polished.

Is this sculpture broken or was this how the artist wanted the hand at the top to look? What does the hand mean?

It's meant to be that way! Rodin deliberately made many of his works to look rough and unfinished. He believed it gave his works a greater emotional impact as if you could feel the sculpture emerging from the raw material. It also differentiated his sculpture from the highly finished academic work of his contemporaries. “The artist must create a spark before he can make a fire and before art is born, the artist must ready to be consumed by the fire of his own creation,” Rodin said. As for the hand, this is part of the story of Orpheus. Orpheus was an amazingly gifted musician and singer. You might see that he's holding his lyre, a stringed instrument.

When his wife Eurydice died, he went down to the underworld and convinced the gods of the underworld by playing and singing for them to release her and send her back to the living world. But he had to promise not to look back as he and Eurydice went back up to the land of the living. He forgot, and looked back to check on Eurydice, thus losing her to the underworld again, permanently. That hand is all we see of Eurydice here.

How did Rodin make these sculptures?

Rodin used the "sand casting" method. He would have created his intended form in clay, then built a mould around it using a mixture of special sand, salt, and a binding agent. When the mould was ready, he would remove the clay from the center and then pour liquid bronze into the mould. Unlike other bronze casting techniques available at the time, sand casting allows for the creation of multiples.

Why do you have so many Rodin sculptures?

We received many of the Rodin works currently on view as a gift from the Cantor Foundation in 1980s. The Cantor Foundation is interested creating opportunities to further explore the works of Rodin and his contemporaries.

When was bronze used to make sculptures such as this one

This sculpture was designed in 1908 and this edition was cast in 1980. People have been making bronze sculptures since ancient times! There is a video in the back that shows how bronze sculptures are made.

Thanks!

Why was this statue cast in 1980 when the creation was in 1908?

That's a common question! Rodin designed the sculpture in 1908, but the mold still exists. He left everything in his studio to the French government upon his death, the Musée Rodin was created which houses many of his works and all of the molds that were in his possession.

With the permission of that museum and the French government, casts of Rodin's sculptures can still be made.

Orpheus (Orphée)

European Art

Here, Rodin presents the poet and musician Orpheus, who according to myth descended into the underworld to rescue his dead lover, Eurydice. Orpheus played his lyre for Hades, who agreed to free Eurydice if Orpheus did not turn back to look at her while escorting her back to the upper world. Unable to resist, he glanced back at her too soon and lost her again forever.

It is unclear which moment Rodin is depicting. Is it defeat, desire, or exultation that produces Orpheus’s upstretched torso and expression? Some of the ambiguity can be explained by the fact that, in its original form, the sculpture included the figure of Eurydice hovering over Orpheus’s shoulder; one of her hands can still be seen on the back. As Rodin’s own description of the work reveals, removing Eurydice allowed him to better convey the many contradictory emotions and temporal dislocations that were his true subject:
I have represented Orpheus at the moment when having tuned his lyre for the infernal chorus and having been awarded the coveted prize of Eurydice he sinks back overcome by the fatigue of his wanderings and the memory of his past anguish. One folded leg partly supports his failing body and his left hand upholds the lyre, while his right hand is extended in supplication. He is to lose Eurydice again, but he does not suspect this now, when the bliss of regaining her has broken the long strain of suspense and suffering.

ARTIST Auguste Rodin, French, 1840–1917

CAST BY Émile Godard Fondeur, Paris

MEDIUM Bronze

Place Made: France

DATES 1908, cast 1980

DIMENSIONS 57 1/2 x 30 x 49 1/4 in. (146.1 x 76.2 x 125.1 cm) (show scale)

MARKINGS Back, proper right: "E. GODARD FOND." Base, proper right: "© by Musée Rodin 1980"

SIGNATURE Base, proper left: "A. Rodin"

INSCRIPTIONS Base, proper left: "No 7"

COLLECTIONS European Art

ACCESSION NUMBER 84.75.3

CREDIT LINE Gift of the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation

EXHIBITIONS

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view

CAPTION Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917). Orpheus (Orphée), 1908, cast 1980. Bronze, 57 1/2 x 30 x 49 1/4 in. (146.1 x 76.2 x 125.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation, 84.75.3. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 84.75.3_SL1.jpg)

EDITION Edition: 7/12

IMAGE overall, 84.75.3_SL1.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph

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RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY

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