Auguste Rodin: Balzac in the Robe of a Dominican Monk

This is the bronze sculpture of, “Balzac in the Robe of a Dominican Monk.” This was made in preparation for a monument to Balzac and was commissioned by the Society of Men of Letters of France in 1891. I like how much detail there is even in the robe of Balzac. I found it interesting that this sculpture was done after Balzac had already died so it was challenging for Auguste Rodin to portray all of the detail. As I researched this sculpture Rodin aimed to represent Balzac’s persona rather than his physical attributes. He had put in a lot of research of his life and times of his subject.