Latest news with #ComitéRodin
CTV News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CTV News
A family thought the sculpture on their piano was a ‘fake' Rodin. Now it's sold for nearly US$1 million
A sculpture by French artist Auguste Rodin that had disappeared from public view for almost 120 years and was thought to be a copy has sold for 860,000 euros (US$984,000) at auction. 'Le Désespoir,' which shows a female figure sat on a rock holding one foot with her knee hugged to her chest, was rediscovered at the end of 2024 after last being sold in 1906, said auction house Rouillac in a statement on Sunday. Rodin, who lived from 1840-1917, made several versions of 'Le Désespoir.' This particular sculpture was modelled in 1890 and sculpted from marble in 1892-93. Measuring just 28.5 centimetres (11.2 inches) by 15 centimetres (5.9 inches) by 25 centimetres (9.8 inches), the sculpture was originally modelled to form part of Rodin's monumental work 'The Gates of Hell,' which features more than 200 figures and groups. The previous owners – a family from central France – had no idea of its value and had displayed the sculpture on top of a piano alongside family photos, auctioneer Aymeric Rouillac told CNN on Tuesday. 'They said 'it's a fake, it's a copy,'' Rouillac said, but he decided to investigate further. The details of this sculpture are striking, Rouillac told CNN. 'The back, the muscles, they are perfect,' he said. 'You can feel every vertebra in the spinal column.' Following his own initial investigation, Rouillac took the sculpture for assessment by the Comité Rodin, which maintains a catalogue of the artist's work. Rodin sculpture A photograph showing the detail on one of the feet in the sculpture. (Guillaume Souvant/AFP via Getty Images via CNN Newsource) On Tuesday, Jérôme Le Blay, co-founder of the Comité Rodin, told CNN that he was immediately struck by the 'exceptional' piece. 'I realized in a second that it was real,' he said. 'I had absolutely no doubt.' This particular example is 'extremely well made,' said Le Blay, adding that it dates back to a period when Rodin was dedicating a huge amount of time to making a small number of sculptures. Rodin would have worked with assistants who would have carried out the initial work on a piece of marble, before he performed the final stages, he explained. According to Le Blay, the sculpture dates to 'one of the best moments of Rodin's career,' before his growing fame meant that he started to produce more and more works after the turn of the century. Upon his death, Rodin left his works to the Musée Rodin in Paris, as well as granting it permission to continue producing his bronze sculptures. While many of these posthumous bronzes go under the hammer each year, marbles are much harder to find, said Le Blay. Most of Rodin's marbles are owned by the Musée Rodin or by other large museums around the world, he said. 'Marbles in private collections are rare,' he said, adding that this piece has a 'kind of magic' due to the fact that it has reappeared for sale after such a long time. Following a 'passionate' auction, the winning bid was made by a young banker from the US West Coast, according to the auction house.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
A family thought the sculpture on their piano was a ‘fake' Rodin. Now it's sold for nearly $1 million
A sculpture by French artist Auguste Rodin that had disappeared from public view for almost 120 years and was thought to be a copy has sold for 860,000 euros ($984,000) at auction. 'Le Désespoir,' which shows a female figure sat on a rock holding one foot with her knee hugged to her chest, was rediscovered at the end of 2024 after last being sold in 1906, said auction house Rouillac in a statement on Sunday. Rodin, who lived from 1840-1917, made several versions of 'Le Désespoir.' This particular sculpture was modelled in 1890 and sculpted from marble in 1892-93. Measuring just 28.5 centimeters (11.2 inches) by 15 centimeters (5.9 inches) by 25 centimeters (9.8 inches), the sculpture was originally modelled to form part of Rodin's monumental work 'The Gates of Hell,' which features more than 200 figures and groups. The previous owners – a family from central France – had no idea of its value and had displayed the sculpture on top of a piano alongside family photos, auctioneer Aymeric Rouillac told CNN on Tuesday. 'They said 'it's a fake, it's a copy,'' Rouillac said, but he decided to investigate further. The details of this sculpture are striking, Rouillac told CNN. 'The back, the muscles, they are perfect,' he said. 'You can feel every vertebra in the spinal column.' Following his own initial investigation, Rouillac took the sculpture for assessment by the Comité Rodin, which maintains a catalogue of the artist's work. On Tuesday, Jérôme Le Blay, co-founder of the Comité Rodin, told CNN that he was immediately struck by the 'exceptional' piece. 'I realized in a second that it was real,' he said. 'I had absolutely no doubt.' This particular example is 'extremely well made,' said Le Blay, adding that it dates back to a period when Rodin was dedicating a huge amount of time to making a small number of sculptures. Rodin would have worked with assistants who would have carried out the initial work on a piece of marble, before he performed the final stages, he explained. According to Le Blay, the sculpture dates to 'one of the best moments of Rodin's career,' before his growing fame meant that he started to produce more and more works after the turn of the century. Upon his death, Rodin left his works to the Musée Rodin in Paris, as well as granting it permission to continue producing his bronze sculptures. While many of these posthumous bronzes go under the hammer each year, marbles are much harder to find, said Le Blay. Most of Rodin's marbles are owned by the Musée Rodin or by other large museums around the world, he said. 'Marbles in private collections are rare,' he said, adding that this piece has a 'kind of magic' due to the fact that it has reappeared for sale after such a long time. Following a 'passionate' auction, the winning bid was made by a young banker from the US West Coast, according to the auction house.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Lost Auguste Rodin sculpture sells for €860,000 at auction in France
A small marble sculpture by French artist Auguste Rodin, which was long thought to be a copy, has fetched €860,000 at an auction in France, at the Château de Villandry (Indre-et-Loire), according to the website of the Rouillac auction house. 'Le Désespoir' ('Despair'), a variation on the famous 'Porte de l'Enfer' ('The Gates of Hell'), was produced around 1892. It depicts a woman hugging her knees and holding her foot. It had disappeared after being sold at an auction in 1906, and its owners had it sitting on a piano in their home, believing it was a replica. After a six-week investigation, they were informed of its authenticity. French auctioneer Aymeric Rouillac told AFP that he went to the Comité Rodin in March and the body, considered to be the leading authority on the French sculptor, confirmed it was not a fake after much research and a genealogical survey. Rouillac described the 28.5cm marble as an 'extremely rare' find. "We have rediscovered it," he added. And sold it for nearly one million dollars to an anonymous American buyer.
CNN
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CNN
A family thought the sculpture on their piano was a ‘fake' Rodin. Now it's sold for nearly $1 million
A sculpture by French artist Auguste Rodin that had disappeared from public view for almost 120 years and was thought to be a copy has sold for 860,000 euros ($984,000) at auction. 'Le Désespoir,' which shows a female figure sat on a rock holding one foot with her knee hugged to her chest, was rediscovered at the end of 2024 after last being sold in 1906, said auction house Rouillac in a statement on Sunday. Rodin, who lived from 1840-1917, made several versions of 'Le Désespoir.' This particular sculpture was modelled in 1890 and sculpted from marble in 1892-93. Measuring just 28.5 centimeters (11.2 inches) by 15 centimeters (5.9 inches) by 25 centimeters (9.8 inches), the sculpture was originally modelled to form part of Rodin's monumental work 'The Gates of Hell,' which features more than 200 figures and groups. The previous owners – a family from central France – had no idea of its value and had displayed the sculpture on top of a piano alongside family photos, auctioneer Aymeric Rouillac told CNN on Tuesday. 'They said 'it's a fake, it's a copy,'' Rouillac said, but he decided to investigate further. The details of this sculpture are striking, Rouillac told CNN. 'The back, the muscles, they are perfect,' he said. 'You can feel every vertebra in the spinal column.' Following his own initial investigation, Rouillac took the sculpture for assessment by the Comité Rodin, which maintains a catalogue of the artist's work. On Tuesday, Jérôme Le Blay, co-founder of the Comité Rodin, told CNN that he was immediately struck by the 'exceptional' piece. 'I realized in a second that it was real,' he said. 'I had absolutely no doubt.' This particular example is 'extremely well made,' said Le Blay, adding that it dates back to a period when Rodin was dedicating a huge amount of time to making a small number of sculptures. Rodin would have worked with assistants who would have carried out the initial work on a piece of marble, before he performed the final stages, he explained. According to Le Blay, the sculpture dates to 'one of the best moments of Rodin's career,' before his growing fame meant that he started to produce more and more works after the turn of the century. Upon his death, Rodin left his works to the Musée Rodin in Paris, as well as granting it permission to continue producing his bronze sculptures. While many of these posthumous bronzes go under the hammer each year, marbles are much harder to find, said Le Blay. Most of Rodin's marbles are owned by the Musée Rodin or by other large museums around the world, he said. 'Marbles in private collections are rare,' he said, adding that this piece has a 'kind of magic' due to the fact that it has reappeared for sale after such a long time. Following a 'passionate' auction, the winning bid was made by a young banker from the US West Coast, according to the auction house.
CNN
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CNN
A family thought the sculpture on their piano was a ‘fake' Rodin. Now it's sold for nearly $1 million
A sculpture by French artist Auguste Rodin that had disappeared from public view for almost 120 years and was thought to be a copy has sold for 860,000 euros ($984,000) at auction. 'Le Désespoir,' which shows a female figure sat on a rock holding one foot with her knee hugged to her chest, was rediscovered at the end of 2024 after last being sold in 1906, said auction house Rouillac in a statement on Sunday. Rodin, who lived from 1840-1917, made several versions of 'Le Désespoir.' This particular sculpture was modelled in 1890 and sculpted from marble in 1892-93. Measuring just 28.5 centimeters (11.2 inches) by 15 centimeters (5.9 inches) by 25 centimeters (9.8 inches), the sculpture was originally modelled to form part of Rodin's monumental work 'The Gates of Hell,' which features more than 200 figures and groups. The previous owners – a family from central France – had no idea of its value and had displayed the sculpture on top of a piano alongside family photos, auctioneer Aymeric Rouillac told CNN on Tuesday. 'They said 'it's a fake, it's a copy,'' Rouillac said, but he decided to investigate further. The details of this sculpture are striking, Rouillac told CNN. 'The back, the muscles, they are perfect,' he said. 'You can feel every vertebra in the spinal column.' Following his own initial investigation, Rouillac took the sculpture for assessment by the Comité Rodin, which maintains a catalogue of the artist's work. On Tuesday, Jérôme Le Blay, co-founder of the Comité Rodin, told CNN that he was immediately struck by the 'exceptional' piece. 'I realized in a second that it was real,' he said. 'I had absolutely no doubt.' This particular example is 'extremely well made,' said Le Blay, adding that it dates back to a period when Rodin was dedicating a huge amount of time to making a small number of sculptures. Rodin would have worked with assistants who would have carried out the initial work on a piece of marble, before he performed the final stages, he explained. According to Le Blay, the sculpture dates to 'one of the best moments of Rodin's career,' before his growing fame meant that he started to produce more and more works after the turn of the century. Upon his death, Rodin left his works to the Musée Rodin in Paris, as well as granting it permission to continue producing his bronze sculptures. While many of these posthumous bronzes go under the hammer each year, marbles are much harder to find, said Le Blay. Most of Rodin's marbles are owned by the Musée Rodin or by other large museums around the world, he said. 'Marbles in private collections are rare,' he said, adding that this piece has a 'kind of magic' due to the fact that it has reappeared for sale after such a long time. Following a 'passionate' auction, the winning bid was made by a young banker from the US West Coast, according to the auction house.
