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THE MARBLE SCULPTURES Antoinette Le Normand-Romain

The Hand of God 1896 marble carved by Soudbinine in 1902 94 x 82,5 x 54,9 cm S.988 Photo : E. & P. Hesmerg

In 1890, several papers reported on "a rather paradoxical artistic theory : Rodin claims that there is a statue in each block of marble. It is just a question of divining it and bringing it out by removing all that is excessive" (Le Temps, 21 December 1890, La Nouvelliste, 29 December, 1890). This comment is surprising coming from Rodin who, like most of his contemporaries, did not like carving marble very much. Although he allowed himself to be filmed by Sacha Guitry holding a hammer and chisel in front of the great Ariadne in the process of being sculpted (in Ceux de chez nous), Rodin was first and foremost a modeller, kneading with his hands a soft material, clay, to which he could add or take away at will. Later he would work with plaster, composing new groups based on works modelled long before.
If artists no longer carved marble, it was because a new division of labour had been introduced. Once the clay model was finished and cast, the "original plaster" was handed over to the "pointer" who roughed down the block, then to the "practicien" who carved as much as possible. The latter obviously worked under the supervision of the artist but his accuracy was guided by a "pointing machine" invented in the 19th century by Nicolas Gatteaux. Following the base points as a guide, a rotating head operated by steam after 1844, then by electricity, made it possible to come close to the desired shape in successive stages, then to accurately transcribe the modelling, with the sculptor usually adding the final touches.

The Man with the Broken Nose 1865 marble carved by Léon Fourquet 44,8 x 41,5 x 23,9 cm S.974 Photo : E. & P. Hesmerg

Rodin worked in the same way. As soon as he was in a position to do so (the bust of The Man with the Broken Nose was carved in marble by Léon Fourquet in 1875), he entrusted his marble carving to practiciens who grew in number as the years went by. In the 1870s and 1880s, he gave them perfectly finished models. But after The Kiss, which was enlarged and carved by Turcan, he became aware of the liberty he could enjoy by handing over to a practicien not a perfect model to be copied exactly in marble but a maquette which could be considered as a starting point. In studying his works and reading the correspondence with his practiciens, it is clear that although he hardly ever touched the marble works himself, he rigorously controlled their execution. One of the most notable examples is Thought (1893-1895, Musée d'Orsay). Victor Peter, who had been entrusted with carving the portrait of Camille Claudel in marble described "how the idea came to the Master to leave the block unfinished below the head". The headdress had led Peter to assume that Rodin would complete the costume with a collerette and so he left the marble untouched below the face. But when Rodin saw the effect this produced, he told him "Don't do anything more, leave it like that!" Another interesting example is the bust of the Duchesse de Choiseul (room 8); Rodin stopped working on it before the hairstyle was carved out of the sort of helmet formed by the rough-hewn block.
The base points can still be seen on this bust. Rodin liked to leave visible traces of his work. The marble sculptures of the 1980s, such as Madame Vicuna (1888, Musée d'Orsay) or the Danaid (1889-1890) have a "finished" aspect because of the flesh polished like ivory and the admirable modelling, both sensitive and precise, which are highlighted by the secondary parts deliberately left in a rough state. The marble works of the 1890s are freer (The Illusion, Sister of Icarus, Salon of the Sociéte Nationale des Beaux-Arts, 1896) but perfectly executed. On the other hand, after 1900 the details became more and more blurred while the base points and marks made by the tools are still visible. The bust of Claire de Choiseul is a striking example, with tenons remaining on the tips of the breasts! When contemplating a work like this, which was never exhibited during the lifetime of the sculptor, it is justifiable to wonder whether it should be considered as a finished piece. Is such an apparent sign of incompletion deliberate on the part of Rodin? It should be noted that the Sculptor and His Muse was exhibited in 1900 with its base points, and in such a different state from the one we know today that it could have been mistaken for a different example.
More than any other sculptor, Rodin took full advantage of this possibility of modifying a work in one way or another when translated into marble. The maquettes he handed to his practiciens, of which many have been kept, were composed of a few precise elements, such as masks and figures already used in other compositions, assembled in a very summary fashion. The collaboration between Rodin and his practiciens was based on their way of interpreting this assemblage. A study of the maquette for The Hand of the Devil, for example, clearly demonstrates this process. The big left hand from The Burghers of Calais holding a small female nude lying on her back, originally modelled for The Gates of Hell, can be recognized without the slightest hesitation. Initially, this figure had no head or legs, but after reducing it in such a radical manner, Rodin completed it sketchily with the Head of a Slav Woman, and with disproportionate hands and arms (which would in turn be transformed into the tail of a mermaid!). However, in the marble version, as the features of the basic components are blurred, it is more difficult to identify them.

Jacques-Ernest Bulloz Thought gelatin silver print 28,5 x 38,2 cm Ph. 636

"Everyone knows", wrote Gustave Coquiot, "that with only a very sketchy model, one tackles the lifesize marble with a greater sense of freshness and energy. This is how the great Renaissance sculptors always worked, and in this way, one does not wear out too much energy on a model which will be copied with little enthusiasm" (Le vrai Rodin, 1913). Rodin, however, was in no danger of wearing out his strength since he did not carve marble himself. On the other hand, misunderstandings between his assistants and himself could arise. A practicien, for instance, could interpret a model entrusted to him in too personal a manner. Bartlett, who dedicated a long series of articles on Rodin, published in The American Architect and Building News in 1889, reported that Rodin was dissatisfied with one of his finest marbles, the bust of Madame Vicuna, for it showed too obviously the hand of the excellent practicien (Jean Escoula) who had carved it. Escoula, Peter, Turcan, Desbois, Pompon, Bourdelle, Schnegg, Despiau and many others, who later pursued their own careers, were obliged to sacrifice their own inclinations and submit to Rodin's style. Some of them enjoyed his trust sufficiently to be able to work on their own instead of in the master's studio.

Fugit Amor, detail before 1887 marble 51 x 72 x 38,9 cm S.1154 Photo : E. & P. Hesmerg

As Rodin's reputation grew, the number of his practiciens increased, resulting in a countless number of marble works coming out of his studio. There were two marble versions of Thought, three large-scale examples of The Kiss, probably four of The Hand of God, and at least four of Fugit Amor, two of the Fish-Woman, and several of the Danaid. Throughout his career, Rodin had several replicas of his successful works made, at first on the request of collectors (August Thyssen, Carl Jacobsen, Mrs. Simpson, etc), and then during the last years of his life, so that the planned museum would be endowed with the most comprehensive panorama of his work possible. These replicas were easily reproduced thanks to the existence of casts made after the first marble works. Nevertheless, this does not necessarily imply that all the examples are identical for the characteristics of a block, the suggestions of the practicien and, no doubt, the mood of the artist himself, could influence the way a work was carved.

Danaid circa 1889 marble carved by Jean Escoula 36 x 71 x 53 cm S.1155 Photo : A. Rzepka

Even though bronze was best suited to Rodin's sculptural style because it rendered all the subtleties of his modelling, as well as the vibrant movement of his compositions, without losing any of their lightness, he himself was truly a man of the 19th century in that he recognized the superiority of white marble, the noble material par excellence. "Stone, a pure and beautiful material for the work of men, like linen for the work of women, a gift barely concealed under the earth, which man has seized eagerly and removed from the shadows, all tender, to launch it upwards in the air, to erect bell towers, to make it pliable, to tame it for masterpieces, less hard than wild rocks! The hardest and the softest love man. Sculpture has magnified it ... Man has played an ephemeral role in Creation : his idea struggles against the works of God like Jacob against the Angel" (Rodin, "Pierre et marbre", Paris- Journal, 1st January 1912).