The museum dedicated to French sculptor Auguste Rodin has undergone an extensive renovation. Caroline Bugler talks to its director, Catherine Chevillot.
The Musée Rodin reopened on 12 November last year, the 175th anniversary of the birth of sculptor Auguste Rodin, who was born in Paris.
The museum, housed in the elegant 18th-century Hôtel Biron where Rodin was once a tenant, was the fulfilment of his dream to create a legacy to inspire young artists.
The building has been the home of the Musée Rodin since 1919. By the dawn of the 21st century, the mansion was badly in need of renovation, and in 2012 the museum embarked on a three-year restoration project, which cost €16m (£11.5m).
In addition to renewing the fabric of the building and adapting it to contemporary needs, the project gave the institution an opportunity to rethink its displays.
Now, there is a broadly chronological presentation on the ground floor, while the first floor explores the aesthetic and symbolist dimensions of Rodin’s work as well as his creative process.
A number of works have been brought out of store for the first time too, including plaster studies, paintings and antiquities. An impressive 123 sculptures have been restored, together with 50 paintings and 100 works from Rodin’s personal collection.
New spaces devoted to the graphic arts, Rodin’s presence at the Hôtel Biron, and his collection of antiquities, have been created to shed new light on his life and work. The garden, where several monumental bronzes are displayed, will be renovated in the coming years.
What were the main challenges of renovating an 18th-century building?
The structure was in a bad state and we needed to replace the parquet floors, woodwork and electrical systems. We couldn’t restore the mansion to its appearance in 1732 because
so much had disappeared.
And anyway, Rodin never knew it as it was then. It was more important to show the works
in an intimate atmosphere that he would have recognised.
How did the renovations allow you to rethink the design?
We abandoned the plain white colour for the walls and devised a new scheme in collaboration with Farrow & Ball to create a special “Biron gray” for the museum, as well as a grey-green that approximates to a colour used in the Hôtel Biron in the 19th century.
These colours work well as a backdrop to the bronzes and plasters. We installed a sophisticated computer-controlled system of illumination that adjusts itself according to the natural light in each room. And I hate museums where you are obliged to read, so there is no text on the walls.
What are the main changes visitors will see?
We’re presenting a view of Rodin that’s more complete and complex than before. People will probably be most surprised by the presence of so many plasters. Plasters were very much part of his act of creation, and we wanted to show how he used them in an experimental way.
The museum has more than 30,000 works in its collection – will you rotate the displays to illustrate different aspects of Rodin’s work?
We will do that in temporary shows in our exhibition space, which is in the former chapel
in the grounds. We have two exhibitions a year, one centred on Rodin and another that places him in the context of 20th-century sculpture.
Did new research on Rodin inform the displays?
Yes, a lot of the rooms were conceived in light of the research we had done for recent exhibitions. The new room on Rodin and Antiquity, for example, was a direct result of our Rodin: La Lumière de l’Antique exhibition. And the room on Rodin and Eugène Carrière also came out of research for a show.
Do you have similar plans for the Musée Rodin at Meudon?
The two sites of the museum, in Paris and Meudon, complement each other. Meudon is Rodin’s house, presented more as a studio, and arranged as it appears in archive photographs. The renovation of that is my next project, but I need to raise €10m (£7.1m) first.
Cost €16m (£11.5m)
Main funders 49% Ministry of Culture and Communication,
51% Rodin Museum, supported by the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation
Commissioning body The Heritage and Cultural Buildings Operator
Architect Richard Duplat, chief architect of historical monuments Exhibition design Atelier de l’Ile, Dominique Brard
Museum partner Farrow & Ball
The Musée Rodin reopened on 12 November last year, the 175th anniversary of the birth of sculptor Auguste Rodin, who was born in Paris.
The museum, housed in the elegant 18th-century Hôtel Biron where Rodin was once a tenant, was the fulfilment of his dream to create a legacy to inspire young artists.
The building has been the home of the Musée Rodin since 1919. By the dawn of the 21st century, the mansion was badly in need of renovation, and in 2012 the museum embarked on a three-year restoration project, which cost €16m (£11.5m).
In addition to renewing the fabric of the building and adapting it to contemporary needs, the project gave the institution an opportunity to rethink its displays.
Now, there is a broadly chronological presentation on the ground floor, while the first floor explores the aesthetic and symbolist dimensions of Rodin’s work as well as his creative process.
A number of works have been brought out of store for the first time too, including plaster studies, paintings and antiquities. An impressive 123 sculptures have been restored, together with 50 paintings and 100 works from Rodin’s personal collection.
New spaces devoted to the graphic arts, Rodin’s presence at the Hôtel Biron, and his collection of antiquities, have been created to shed new light on his life and work. The garden, where several monumental bronzes are displayed, will be renovated in the coming years.
What were the main challenges of renovating an 18th-century building?
The structure was in a bad state and we needed to replace the parquet floors, woodwork and electrical systems. We couldn’t restore the mansion to its appearance in 1732 because
so much had disappeared.
And anyway, Rodin never knew it as it was then. It was more important to show the works
in an intimate atmosphere that he would have recognised.
How did the renovations allow you to rethink the design?
We abandoned the plain white colour for the walls and devised a new scheme in collaboration with Farrow & Ball to create a special “Biron gray” for the museum, as well as a grey-green that approximates to a colour used in the Hôtel Biron in the 19th century.
These colours work well as a backdrop to the bronzes and plasters. We installed a sophisticated computer-controlled system of illumination that adjusts itself according to the natural light in each room. And I hate museums where you are obliged to read, so there is no text on the walls.
What are the main changes visitors will see?
We’re presenting a view of Rodin that’s more complete and complex than before. People will probably be most surprised by the presence of so many plasters. Plasters were very much part of his act of creation, and we wanted to show how he used them in an experimental way.
The museum has more than 30,000 works in its collection – will you rotate the displays to illustrate different aspects of Rodin’s work?
We will do that in temporary shows in our exhibition space, which is in the former chapel
in the grounds. We have two exhibitions a year, one centred on Rodin and another that places him in the context of 20th-century sculpture.
Did new research on Rodin inform the displays?
Yes, a lot of the rooms were conceived in light of the research we had done for recent exhibitions. The new room on Rodin and Antiquity, for example, was a direct result of our Rodin: La Lumière de l’Antique exhibition. And the room on Rodin and Eugène Carrière also came out of research for a show.
Do you have similar plans for the Musée Rodin at Meudon?
The two sites of the museum, in Paris and Meudon, complement each other. Meudon is Rodin’s house, presented more as a studio, and arranged as it appears in archive photographs. The renovation of that is my next project, but I need to raise €10m (£7.1m) first.
Project data
Cost €16m (£11.5m)
Main funders 49% Ministry of Culture and Communication,
51% Rodin Museum, supported by the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation
Commissioning body The Heritage and Cultural Buildings Operator
Architect Richard Duplat, chief architect of historical monuments Exhibition design Atelier de l’Ile, Dominique Brard
Museum partner Farrow & Ball