New Ways to Appreciate Auguste Rodin

The Met has a storied history with Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917), who breathed life into each and every one of his sculptures: monumental feats such as The Thinker (modeled ca. 1880, cast ca. 1910) and The Burghers of Calais (modeled 1884–95, cast 1985), and intimate studies of heads and hands alike.

A gallery devoted to Rodin’s sculptures and drawings, unveiled in 1912, was The Met’s first space dedicated to the work of a living artist. Later in the 20th century, the Museum acquired over 30 more of his sculptures from Iris and B. Gerald Cantor and their foundation, many of which are posthumously cast editions authorized by the artist before his death. Today, the Rodin collection at The Met is one of the largest and most distinguished of its kind in the country.

Below, shop small-scale reproductions of Rodin’s sculptures in The Met collection and beyond.

Rodin The Thinker Tee

The iconic figure reimagined on our stylish graphic tee (coming soon) is Rodin's The Thinker (modeled ca. 1880, cast ca. 1910).

Rodin conceived of The Thinker upon receiving a commission from the French government to create the portal for a new building designed to house the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris. The museum was never built, but the artist’s intention for the project, which he called The Gates of Hell, nevertheless defined his career. 

Rodin’s vision for The Gates of Hell evolved over the course of decades, as he added, removed, and reworked the numerous figures populating the scene. The Thinker was originally intended to sit over the lintel, contemplating the fate of the damned.

Independent bronzes of The Thinker became especially popular among American patrons, and this cast in the Museum’s European Sculpture and Decorative Arts holdings was commissioned from the sculptor’s studio by Thomas Fortune Ryan, the principal founder of The Met’s Rodin collection. As one critic described it, The Thinker—simultaneously cerebral and muscular—embodies both “dream and action.”

Auguste Rodin: The Thinker Sculpture

Transform any space into a gallery with a sculpture reproduction from The Met Store. Our reduced-scale, hand-patinated bonded-bronze version of The Thinker, scanned directly from the bronze cast in The Met collection, is the perfect artful addition to the home or office. 

Auguste Rodin: Adam Sculpture

In a letter from 1881, Rodin wrote of “two colossal figures that will stand at either side of the gates,” namely The Gates of Hell, identifiable as Adam and Eve. Rodin exhibited a plaster of Adam at the Paris Salon of 1881, so the composition may have predated its proposed place in The Gates of Hell. However, Adam’s twisting, writhing likeness complements Eve’s, so that they appear to gesture toward one another as they stand in eternal witness to the consequences of their sin. 

The Museum’s Adam (modeled 1880 or 1881, cast 1910), a reduced-scale, hand-patinated bonded-bronze reproduction of which is available at The Met Store, belongs to a series of powerful male nudes that established Rodin as a major sculptor in the 1870s and early 1880s. 

Of each figure in the series, this work offers the clearest homage to Michelangelo, whose work Rodin had passionately admired and studied in Italy. 

Auguste Rodin: The Kiss Sculpture

Like The Thinker, The Kiss was originally conceived of for The Gates of Hell. It’s based on the damned lovers Paolo and Francesca from Dante's Inferno, who were banished to hell for eternity for kissing after Francesca married Paolo's brother. 

Emanating a deep and sincere love, The Kiss, recalled by our selection of sculptures in various sizes and materials, has remained one of Rodin’s most popular works to this day. 

Produced in cooperation with the Musée Rodin, Paris.

Auguste Rodin: Danaïd Sculpture

This striking reproduction pays homage to Rodin’s design for Danaïd, also known as The Spring. The original sculpture references a story from Greek mythology, in which the Danaïds, or daughters of Danaos, are forced to fill up bottomless vessels with water as punishment for murdering their husbands on their wedding night. Rodin chose to depict one of the Danaïds in a moment of exhaustion, despairing over the impossibility of her task. Danaïd was initially conceived as part of The Gates of Hell in 1885, but Rodin ultimately elected not to include it.

Produced in cooperation with the Musée Rodin, Paris.

Auguste Rodin: The Secret Sculpture

The two graceful hands in this reproduction are based on a study for The Secret (modeled probably ca. 1910, cast 1956), a sculpture in which two right hands "hold" an intangible secret. 

Rodin was preoccupied with hands as the creative, shaping force between the world of nature and the world of art. Throughout his oeuvre, hands are full of expression, power, and emotion.

Auguste Rodin: The Cathedral Sculpture

These graceful hands celebrate Rodin’s The Cathedral, originally conceived of in 1908. It depicts two right hands grazing fingertips, separated by a profound space that Rodin often employed in his work to great effect. The sculpture’s title could be understood to reference the divine space contained within a cathedral.

Produced in cooperation with the Musée Rodin, Paris.

Shop our full range of tees, sculptures, and other art-inspired accessories for you and your home at The Met Store.