Auguste Rodin

Mrs. B. Ashley-Malin, Great Britain

Private Collection, Great Britain (acquired as a gift from the above in 1980)

Sale: Christie's, London, December 7, 1999, lot 152

W.R. Davis Fine Art, New York

Sale: Sotheby's, New York, November 5, 2004, lot 104

Private Collection

Sale: Christie's, New York, May 10, 2007, lot 252

Acquired at the above sale

Rainer Maria Rilke, Auguste Rodin, London, 1917, illustration of another cast pl. 6

Georges Grappe, Catalogue du Musée Rodin, Paris, 1927, nos. 91-92, p. 47, illustration of the marble version no. 91

Georges Grappe, Catalogue du Musée Rodin, Paris, 1944, no. 71, illustration of the marble version

Georges Grappe, Le Musée Rodin, Paris, 1947, illustration of the marble version, pl. 71

Cécile Goldscheider, Rodin, sa vie, son oeuvre, son héritage, Paris, 1962, illustration of the marble version, p. 49

Albert Edward Elsen, Rodin (exhibition catalogue), The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1963, illustration of the larger bronze version p. 63

Bernard Champigneulle, Rodin, London, 1967, nos. 78-79, illustrations of the marble version pp. 162-163

Robert Descharnes & Jean-François Chabrun, Auguste Rodin, Lausanne, 1967, illustration of the larger marble version p. 131

Ionel Jianou & Cécile Goldscheider, Rodin, Paris, 1967, illustration of the marble version pls. 54-55

Ludwig Goldscheider, Rodin Sculptures, London, 1970, no. 49, illustration of the marble version, p. 121

John L. Tancock, The Sculpture of Auguste Rodin, Philadelphia, 1976, illustration of the marble version p. 77

Jacques de Caso & Patricia B. Sanders, Rodin's Sculpture (exhibition catalogue), The Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, San Francisco, 1977, illustrations of another cast pp. 148 & 150

Albert Edward Elsen, In Rodin's Studio, A Photographic Record of Sculpture in the Making, Ithaca, 1980, illustration of the marble on the cover

Hélène Pinet, Rodin, sculpteur et les photographes de son temps, Paris, 1985, no. 34, illustration of the marble p. 46

Nicole Barbier, Marbres de Rodin: Collection de Musée Rodin, Paris, 1987, no. 79, illustration of the marble version p. 185

Frederic V. Grunfeld, Rodin, A Biography, New York, 1987, pp. 187-190, 221-222, 260, 262, 275-276, 281-282, 342, 373-374, 400, 457 and 577

Pierre Kjellberg, Les bronzes du XIXe siècle, Paris, 1987, illustration of another cast p. 585

David Finn & Marie Busco, Rodin and his Contemporaries: The Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Collection, New York, 1991, illustrations of another cast pp. 60-61

Albert Edward Elsen, Rodin's Art, The Rodin Collection of the Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Center for the Visual Arts at Stanford University, New York, 2003, no. 49, illustration of another cast pp. 214-215

Antoinette Le Normand-Romain, The Bronzes of Rodin, Catalogue of Works in the Musée Rodin, vol. I, Paris, 2007, illustration of another cast p. 162

This work is in excellent condition. Rich brown patina. Minor wear to patina consistent with age.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Writing about Le Baiser, Albert Elsen captured the essence and vitality of Rodin's work,"'Trembling flesh' and 'palpitating life,' visible, for example, in the taut features of Paolo's back, are the result of the sculptor's energizing modeling, which seems to blossom from within to the outside, like life itself. Vital modeling combines with an unconventional grouping to convey a range of sentiments, inspired by Baudelaire, whose intensity, passion, and psychological honesty are far removed from the emotional languor of academic sculpture of the time. With works such as The Kiss, Rodin had achieved a redefinition of sculptural beauty and expression....The Kiss revealed that beauty and soul need not preclude the expression of life, and this combination and reorientation of crucial values provided the basis and substance for Rodin's artistic appeal" (A. E. Elsen, Rodin Rediscovered (exhibition catalogue), National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C, 1981, pp. 86-87).

Rainer Maria Rilke wrote of this work in 1903, "The spell of the great group of the girl and the man that is named 'The Kiss' lies in this understanding distribution of life. In this group waves flow through the bodies, a shuddering ripple, a thrill of strength, and a presaging of beauty. This is the reason why one beholds everywhere on these bodies the ecstasy of this kiss. It is like a sun that rises and floods all with its light" (R. M. Rilke, Rodin, London, 1946, p. 26).