November 12 was the 172th birthday of August Rodin who is considered the progenitor of modern sculpture and one of my favorite artists in the history.
Believe me. Even though I like Rodin's masterpieces a lot, I didn't know his birthday by heart! :)
It was Google who informed me on November 12 when I opened my explorer.
Well of course, Rodin is a very very famous and great sculptor. Still, I didn't realize that he was at the level of the artists whose birthdays are to be celebrated by Google.
Probably, I must have been underestimating the maestro. I was glad to know that he was even greater than I knew. :)
Long time ago when I spent two months in Paris, I fell in love with Musée Rodin, and went back there a few times. I went there sometimes to admire the Musée itself, of which original name was L'Hôtel Biron that was used as Rodin's workshop from 1908 til his death.
For a couple of times, I only entered the famous garden without a museum pass, to see Le Penseur( The Thinker) and La porte d'Enfer (the Gates of Hell), along with other sculptures.
While we were in Paris this summer, we had to divide each day for, at least, two different places/monuments/museums, as there were so many things to see and we had only a limited time. Even though I had wanted to go and see the Musée Rodin, I also knew that we had to see the Eiffel tower and the aquarium in front of the tower as we already had purchased the tickets before the trip. It was a busy day. Well, it was a busy day everyday in France, indeed. That is why we decided to see only the sculptures displayed over the three-hectare garden.
It costs 1 € for the admission to the garden, and 9 € for the full admission. I would say Musée Rodin is the museum that charges very reasonable admission fees.
You can access the garden free if you are between 18 and 25 years old and from EU countries.
You can see the admission rate here.
The accessibility of Musée Rodin is wonderful. You get off at the metro station Varenne (Line 13), and the museum is located at 5-minute walk. The address of the museum is 79, rue de Varenne - 75007 Paris.
The museum is so close to Les Invalides where Napoleon Bonaparte or Napoleon I is entombed that you can see the glimmering gold dome roof of Les Invalides.
In my humble opinion :), Le Penseur( The Thinker) is "the" masterpiece of Auguste Rodin(1840-1917), who is known as the progenitor of modern sculpture.
I don't have any problem to sit and admire the Thinker, non-stop for a half hour.
Don't get me wrong. I don't know much about sculpture, but I know what I like.
The extensive garden of the Musée is a great attraction, as I already wrote above.
Facing the building, you can start from the Thinker on your right, then move on counter-clockwise. Then you can finish at the Gates of Hell.
Let's start here :)
Le Penseur (The Thinker), bronze sculpture on marble pedestal by Auguste Rodin, was first cast in 1902.
Monument to Balzac is the next sculpture you will see in the garden.
Pablo with Honoré de Balzac :)
La Grande Ombre (English: The long shadow)
La méditation (The meditation)
Tree-lined pathway of the garden at Musée Rodin
Hugolin et ses enfants (English: Ugolino and his children) (bronze) (1904)
There are many more sculptures before you get to the pond, even though you don't see all here :)
The view from the very back of the garden
The brothers at Musée Rodin
L'ombre (bronze).
It's strange, but I didn't find the photo I took from the front. :(
Pierre de Wissant
A lot of Rodin's representative sculptures appeared on La Porte de l'Enfer(English: The Gates of Hell), Rodin's monumental sculpture group work that depicted a scene from "The Inferno", the first section of Dante's Divine Comedy. La Porte de l'Enfer is 6 metres high, 4 metres wide and 1 metre deep, and contains 180 figures.
The smallest figure is The figures range from 15 cm tall up to more than 1 metre.
There are a couple of standing binoculars to study the details of the Gate.
Le Penseur is almost at the top of the Gate.
Les Trois Ombres (English: The three shades) is at the top.
The actual size of Les Trois Ombres (English: The three shades) is also at the garden.
It is a big gate, but still 180 figures are a lot of sculptures, aren't they?
Les Bourgeois de Calais(English: The Burghers of Calais) is one of the most famous sculptures by Auguste Rodin, completed in 1889.
Les Bourgeois de Calais(English: The Burghers of Calais) is a monument to the occurrence in 1347 during the Hundred Years' War, when Calais, an important French port, was under siege by the English for over a year.
Sad expressions on each of the sculptures are so realistic that they are even depressing!
Les Bourgeois de Calais(English: The Burghers of Calais) is the last major masterpiece you see in the garden to before you come back to the front of the main entrance of the Musée Rodin.
On a summer day, the garden of the Musée Rodin is a perfect place to relax.
I highly recommend it! :D
You can see more posts about my trip to France if you click the links below:
1) [Auberge Ravoux] Van Gogh's last residence in Auvers-sur-Oise
2) [Basilique Saint-Denis] French Royal Necropolis - The burial place of the French Kings
3) [2012 Maffliers] Kids grow fast... and we age faster...?
4) [Chateau de Chantilly] Le musée Condé - The generosity of a royal prince
5) [Balade gourmande] Brittany by sail: Unforgettable day on a traditional boat in Cancale
6) [Must eat foods in France] You must try these ten inexpensive food in France
7) [Four Representative Architectures in Paris] The most visited edifices in Europe - Part I
8) [Four Representative Architectures in Paris] Notre Dame de Paris - Part II
9) [Four Representative Architectures in Paris Part III] Musee de Louvre or simply Louvre
10) [Opera Garnier] The symbol of Elegance at the centre of Paris
11) [Mont Saint-Michel] Picturesque UNESCO Hertiage site in Normandy
12) [Place des Vosges] A Perfect Symmetrical Square in Paris
13) [Roland Garros] Visiting the glorious French Open venue
You can see more posts about my trip to France if you click the links below:
1) [Auberge Ravoux] Van Gogh's last residence in Auvers-sur-Oise
2) [Basilique Saint-Denis] French Royal Necropolis - The burial place of the French Kings
3) [2012 Maffliers] Kids grow fast... and we age faster...?
4) [Chateau de Chantilly] Le musée Condé - The generosity of a royal prince
5) [Balade gourmande] Brittany by sail: Unforgettable day on a traditional boat in Cancale
6) [Must eat foods in France] You must try these ten inexpensive food in France
7) [Four Representative Architectures in Paris] The most visited edifices in Europe - Part I
8) [Four Representative Architectures in Paris] Notre Dame de Paris - Part II
9) [Four Representative Architectures in Paris Part III] Musee de Louvre or simply Louvre
10) [Opera Garnier] The symbol of Elegance at the centre of Paris
11) [Mont Saint-Michel] Picturesque UNESCO Hertiage site in Normandy
12) [Place des Vosges] A Perfect Symmetrical Square in Paris
13) [Roland Garros] Visiting the glorious French Open venue
Musée Rodin
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