Camille Claudel is a youthful talented woman when it comes to sculptress of pleasant ability-she is beginning to discover life. Unluckily, Auguste Rodin has the same mania for sculpting and clay which see Camille becoming his aficionada and disciple. The two, Rodin and Camille, engages in unhealthy competition as far as their work is concerned resulting to the start of failure of their relationship (Bruno, 2001). Rodin has another woman whom they had a child together, and he is not willing cease the relationship while Camille, on the other hand is willing to do even the worst-sacrifice her own creative artistic genius-so as to save the connection.
Rodin sticks to the other woman leaving Camille desperate. Out of desperation, Camille aborts his child and walks the path to insanity. Paul, Camille’s brother, takes the responsibility of having her taken to a mental institution (Bruno, 2001). She dies an old woman in that mental institution where she had stayed for thirty years.
An irony exists whereby Camille’s parent had more interest, and hopes in her than his brother Paul due to her artistic potential, but this interest and hope are short lived after Camille hurts and disappoints everyone. Paul turns to God and finds more fulfillments in what God has done to him thereby becoming the true success (Bruno, 2001).
Claudel's contribution to the 19th century sculptures.
Claudel’s created many works of exquisite and pure beauty proving that women would outdo men if given a chance during this era-19th century. Her first sculptures Claudel finished at the institution are among the first epitome of her seminal tasks. They included, bronze bust of her sibling at age 13 and La Vieille Helene, sculpted after the relatives' house help. Claudel exhibited two sculptures at the Paris Salon: The Clotho and Waltz, a propelling depiction of one of the Fates from Greek mythology. Claudel brings out Clotho as an aged woman with a disturbingly wasted body, knotted in the gear of fate she must interlace.
L’Age Mur is an autobiographical sculpture depicting a love triangle and the La Vague which comprises of three female figures bathing under an enormous wave was also her contribution during this era (Bruno, 2001). Most of her collections are preserved in the museum for example the plaster of The Wounded Niobid, deposited by the French State at the Bejaia Museum in Algeria in 1935.
How does her work differ from other examples of 19th century sculpture?
Claudel is being viewed as an artist apart from Rodin. Her art is now regarded considered being coherently innovative, radiant and intense compared to other artists. She finished some of her most innovative and grown-up works, including L'Age Mur, an autobiographical sculpture bringing out adore triangle, and La Vague (1900), with three female statures showering under a gigantic wave (Bruno, 2001).
She uniquely came up with a new style whereby she founded her work of art on a persuasive participate of curves using onyx which was a rare material during that time. She structured large works as well as sculptures of a more intimate scale as compared to other artists (Bruno, 2001).
Why was Claudel's career not as successful as Rodin's?
Claudel’s rights were limited since she was a woman and at this particular moment in time, women were not supposed to have a goal. This saw Claudel’s denied the best resources that the country could provide -She lived in the wrong era where a woman was required to be a wife and mother (Bruno, 2001).
Claudel’s was disqualified from the best art school, L'Ecole des Beaux-Arts, because of her femininity. This left her with no choice but to join a lesser schools, Academie Colarossi, which was poorly equipped as compared to L’Ecole Beaux-Arts and this underlying principle, affected her growth negatively in this field of arts.
Claudel became eccentric and nervous because of the difficulties of her life caused by Rodin’s who was not willing to leave his long-partner and mother of his son in order to marry her. This made her live him where she ended up working under enormous pressure, which affected her productivity pessimistically (Bruno, 2001).
Claudel’s also destroyed most of her art work -about 90 statues, sketches and drawings-This made her family members believe that she was insane. They opted to send her to a psychiatric hospital where she spent thirty unproductive years (Bruno, 2001). Most of Rodin’s work in art was not solely his but a joint work with Claudel’s but only Robins is recognized for the accomplishment of that work.
Based on the above explanation, it is quite profound that Claudel’s work and time was destroyed and she was denied most of the rights that male members practiced-Rodin’s. This gave Rodin’s a better opportunity to succeed in his work (Bruno, 2001).
Work cited
Camille Claudel. Dir. Bruno Nuytten. Perf. Bruno. MGM Home Entertainment Inc., 2001. DVD.
