Rodin's Art : The Rodin Collection of Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Center of Visual Arts at Stanford University

The late Albert Elsen was the first American scholar to study seriously the work of the French sculptor Auguste Rodin, and the person most responsible for a revival of interest in the artist as a modern innovator--after years during which the sculpture had been dismissed as so much Victorian bathos. After a fortuitous meeting with the financier, philanthropist, and art collector B. Gerald Cantor, Elsen helped Cantor build a major collection of Rodin's work. A large part of this collection, consisting of more than two hundred works, was donated to the Stanford University's museum by Mr. Cantor, who died in 1996. In size Stanford's collection is surpassed only by the Musée Rodin in Paris and rivaled only by the collection in Philadelphia. In scope the collection is unique in having been carefully selected to present a balanced view of Rodin's work throughout his life.

Rodin's Art encompasses a lifetime's thoughts on Rodin's career, surveying the artist's accomplishments through the detailed discussion of each object in the collection. Its essays on the formation of the collection, the reception of Rodin's work, and his casting techniques are invaluable. The other entries, arranged topically, include extensive discussions of Rodin's major projects.

The late Albert Elsen (1927-1995) was the Walter A. Haas Professor of Art History at Stanford University and an activist on behalf of art and artists. He was the recipient of numerous awards and honors, among them Fulbright, Guggenheim, and National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowships; he also served as President of The College Art Association of America. His books include The Purposes of Art, The Sculpture of Henri Matisse, In Rodin's Studio, "The Gates of Hell" by Auguste Rodin, and Rodin and His Contemporaries.
Following Professor Elsen's untimely death, his manuscript was brought to completion by Dr. Rosalyn Frankel Jamison, an independent scholar.
Bernard Barryte is Chief Curator at the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts at Stanford University.