One encounter that would prove to a true revelation for Auguste Rodin was his discovery of dance
Loïe Fuller and Isadora Duncan, dancers and actresses form the United States, so enchanted the French artist as to lead him to examine the form and movement of bodies in a different manner. The two women unleashed the creativity of the artist, who was already far removed from classic principles of sculpture, leading his to dedicate his work to the expressive potential of the body, particularly of the body in dance.
25 October 2023 will see the inauguration at the MUDEC in Milan of the exhibition Rodin and Dance, open until 10 March 2024.
In collaboration with the Musée Rodin of Paris and curated by Aude Chevalier, assistant curator at the department of sculpture at the Musée Rodin, Elena Cervellati, an expert of history, theory and practices of dance, and Cristiana Natali, an expert in the anthropology and ethnography of dance and entertainment, the exhibition draws on the series of small terracotta figures produced by Rodin in the 1920s..
The core of the exhibition is on loan from the Musée Rodin; around 60 works, including original photographs, drawings and sculptures and the precious terracotta ballerinas.
The exhibition will be rendered even more complete with video material, extracts of film and documentaries examining both the dancers that Rodin met and studied, and the culture of Cambodia and its dances. There will also be a section dedicated to contemporary choreography, including a number of artists who have drawn inspiration from Rodin and his works.
“Rodin had a wonderful way of representing human vitality; his method of study goes some way to explaining the secret of his strength. He sought to surround himself with this vision of free and animated nudity, refining the view of the unsurpassed Greeks: in his studio, models do not pose in pre-ordered positions. He has many, both men and women, walk around him with freedom and vitality, and he feverishly outlines the delightfully casual stances in small statues.” Enrico Thovez