True Nature: Rodin and the Age of Impressionism

True Nature: Rodin and the Age of Impressionism presents works by one of the most celebrated sculptors of all time, side-by-side with remarkable paintings by his renowned contemporaries. 

Rodin (1840-1917) created dramatic works that are instantly recognizable, and pervade our collective cultural consciousness. This exhibition includes nearly 40 of his masterpieces, ranging from intimately-scaled marble statues to monumental bronzes. It offers a remarkably comprehensive look at the artist, placing him within the context of the profound artistic, cultural, and social changes occurring at the end of the nineteenth century in France. True Nature also explores Rodin’s desire for academic recognition, even as he remained at the forefront of the avant-garde alongside the Impressionists. 

Featuring examples of the artist’s most eminent works, such as Monument to Honoré Balzac (1897), Saint John the Baptist Preaching (1878), and Jean d’Arc (1886), this exhibition looks beyond Rodin’s popular persona as the tormented Romantic genius, revealing his extraordinary powers of observation and ability to capture emotion and movement. 

True Nature also includes major paintings such as Claude Monet’s In the Woods at Giverny (1887), Paul Cézanne’s Still Life with Cherries and Peaches (1885-1887), Edgar Degas’ The Bellelli Sisters (1865-1866), and Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Two Girls Reading (1890-1891). Consummate photographs, drawings, and sculptures by other masters of the period also join the exhibition.

True Nature: Rodin and the Age of Impressionism is organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website

Image credit:  Paul Cézanne, Still Life With Cherries And Peaches (detail), 1885-1887, Oil on canvas, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Gift of Adele R. Levy Fund, Inc., and Mr. and Mrs. Armand S. Deutsch, photo © Museum Associates/LACMA