The Thinker
“Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely” -Auguste Rodin
The quote above, perfectly describes the kind of person Rodin was, and the type of art he produced. Rodin is known as a very proactive, persevering, and innovative man from history. One of Rodin’s most amazing sculptures, The Thinker, is renowned as one of the most innovative and inspiring art pieces ever created. This magnificent and fascinating sculpture was so influential because of its themes of mental creativity, intellect, and spirituality. Even though this piece is so well known and inspiring, many people still struggle to identify what exactly this piece says about human nature. In order for one to discover what this sculpture says about human nature, one must take into account the time period the art piece was created in, the author’s influence, and the analysis of the piece. All of the evidence found among these categories related to the sculpture suggest that The Thinker, created by the famous Auguste Rodin, depicts the creativity and spirituality of human nature.
One of the major factors that can help for analyzing the meaning of this sculpture is the artist himself. However, more important than the artist himself, are his experiences, which greatly shaped the intended meaning of the piece. Rodin’s life consisted of several impactful events such as being rejected from colleges, visiting Italy to study the art of Michelangelo, being diagnosed with poor eyesight at a young age, and experiencing World War I (Auguste Rodin Biography). All of these early life-impacting events caused Rodin to search for an inspiration, or a getaway from the war scenery and his past failures. This getaway trip was found wh...
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...s on human religion and thought in his sculptures. Rodin’s most significant sculpture, The Thinker, describes us humans as creative and spiritual beings. That is why this sculpture is such an important piece of art from history; because the sculpture does something that not many other pieces of art have ever done. The Thinker describes ourselves.
Works Cited
"Auguste Rodin Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 2 Feb. 2014.
"Auguste Rodin Quotes." BrainyQuote. Xplore, n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.
Hale, William Harlan. World of Rodin: 1840-1917. S.l.: Time, 1969. 12+. Print.
"History Timeline (1870-1919)." History Timeline (1870-1919). N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Feb. 2014.
"Rodin's The Thinker." Cleveland Museum of Art. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Feb. 2014.
Spencer, Reid B. "Top 10 Greatest Sculptures." Listverse. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Feb. 2014
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