Torsos and More Torsos
There are two pieces in the photograph that accompanies our recent NEWS post, to the left. They have similar titles: Study for the Torso of the Walking Man and Large Torso of the Walking Man. The former has a truncated right leg (the leg ends before the top of the knee). The other has two hips, minimally indicated, with nothing below. This is one of the complications of studying Rodin. Often the same or nearly the same titles are given to different pieces. Or a piece would bear its original title but have newly included arms or legs. Or an unchanged piece would be given a different title each time it was included in a new exhibition. Titles aside, these Torsos attest to Rodin’s interest in ancient Greek and Roman sculpture, pieces of which were often excavated as fragments and/or with mineral accretions. The Torsos confirm the artist’s conviction that partial figures can convey emotional meaning and aesthetic pleasure. They also confirm his interest in Michelangelo.
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