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Pierre de Wiessant, Monumental (Pierre de Wissant, monumental)

European Art

On View: Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Pavilion, 1st Floor
In this final version of the figure of Pierre de Wiessant, the body expresses the agonizing physical and psychic price of placing the collective good above personal survival. His disproportionately large hands recall the unconscious gestures that might accompany an intense internal struggle, and his feet—one planted, the other pivoting—simultaneously suggest hesitation and propulsion toward a destiny that has been accepted. The huge, flexed bicep is visually countered by the rope—a token of Wiessant’s surrender—hanging down on the other side of his body.
MEDIUM Bronze
  • Place Made: France
  • DATES 1887; cast 1979
    DIMENSIONS 84 5/8 x 46 x 39 in., 567 lb. (214.9 x 116.8 x 99.1 cm)  (show scale)
    MARKINGS Back, lower edge of base: "F*C" Back, lower edge of base: "© by Musée Rodin 1979"
    SIGNATURE Base, near proper left foot: "A. Rodin"
    INSCRIPTIONS Base, near proper left foot: "No 3"
    COLLECTIONS European Art
    ACCESSION NUMBER 84.243
    CREDIT LINE Gift of Iris and B. Gerald Cantor
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in Martha A. and Robert S. Rubin Pavilion, 1st Floor
    CAPTION Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917). Pierre de Wiessant, Monumental (Pierre de Wissant, monumental), 1887; cast 1979. Bronze, 84 5/8 x 46 x 39 in., 567 lb. (214.9 x 116.8 x 99.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Iris and B. Gerald Cantor, 84.243. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 84.243_SL1.jpg)
    EDITION Edition: 3/12
    IMAGE overall, 84.243_SL1.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
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    RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY
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