Rodin’s Obsession: The Gates of Hell, Selections from the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Collection

June 15, 2002 – August 25, 2002

This exhibition provides Kansans a unique opportunity to see works by famed French sculptor Auguste Rodin (1840-1917). The thirty bronzes featured were collected by Iris and B. Gerald Cantor. The bronze sculptures, dating between 1880-1900, were studies for a large door entitled The Gates of Hell, inspired by Dante’s Divine Comedy (c. 1307) and Charles Baudelaire’s Les Fleurs du Mal (1857). They include studies for the well known sculptures The Thinker and The Kiss. The exhibition also includes interpretive panels showing the lost wax casting process used by Rodin.

Beach Museum of Art director Lorne Render stated, “This is an opportunity for Kansans to see work by an important historical artist. Rodin is regarded by many as the greatest sculptor since Michelangelo. We are very excited to have the opportunity to share this work with our visitors.”

The exhibition was organized and made possible by the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation and is sponsored by Grand M`ere, A Master Planned Golf Course Community. Public programming includes three Arts Above the Arch events and a teachers’ guide, produced by the Cantor Foundation. It was available in the Museum’s Resource Center.