Portrait of Balzac

Museum collection

Museum work by Auguste Rodin

Art Institute of Chicago

Thread 79575

Authority & LeadershipReserved

Where the original lives

Art Institute of Chicago

The original is held by the Art Institute of Chicago and is not for sale. This piece is shown for reference — no edition of it is offered.

See the work in the Art Institute of Chicago collection

Curator’s note

Auguste Rodin (Modeled 1893, cast 1926–33) from France. Held in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago and released into the public domain, offered here as a museum-quality edition within the authority thread.

Details

Artist: Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917)
Date: Modeled 1893, cast 1926–33
Medium: Bronze
Dimensions: 127.6 × 73.7 × 59.7 cm · 50.2 × 29.0 in
Origin: France
Collection: Gift of Silvain and Arma Wyler

Placing a authority & leadership work

Authority in a picture comes from composition before subject. A strong horizon, a figure that holds the centre, architecture that does not apologise for its mass. Hung behind a desk or at the head of a room, these works do quiet work on the people in front of them — which is precisely why boardrooms have always been hung this way.

Direction: South — the quarter of standing and resolve
Rooms: Boardrooms · Studies · Executive offices · Libraries

See the whole thread

Provenance & rights

Source collection: Art Institute of Chicago. Gift of Silvain and Arma Wyler. Public domain (CC0). Shown here for reference, with full attribution to the artist and holding institution. No edition of this work is offered.