Study of a hand
Rodin was fascinated by the expressive possibilities of hands: hands gesturing in anguish as in The Burghers of Calais, small studies of hands pulsing with life, giant enigmatic hands sufficient unto themselves. The poet Rainer Maria Rilke (1875–1926), who was for a time Rodin's secretary, wrote: "There are among the works of Rodin's hands, single small hands, which without belonging to a body, are alive. Hands that rise, irritated and in wrath; hands whose five bristling fingers seem to bark like the five jaws of a dog of Hell."
Artwork Details
- Title: Study of a hand
- Artist: Auguste Rodin (French, Paris 1840–1917 Meudon)
- Date: 20th century
- Culture: French
- Medium: Cast plaster
- Dimensions: Length: 2 in. (5.1 cm)
- Classification: Sculpture
- Credit Line: Gift of Auguste Rodin, 1912
- Object Number: 12.12.18
- Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
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