Vase of the Titans

between 1877 and 1879

Auguste Rodin, Artist Albert Ernest Carrier-Belleuse, Designer

On View

Modern, Level 2, Central Wing

Vase of the Titans: 1 of Collection Gallery

Vase of the Titans: 2 of Collection Gallery

Vase of the Titans: 3 of Collection Gallery

Vase of the Titans: 4 of Collection Gallery

Vase of the Titans: 5 of Collection Gallery

Vase of the Titans: 6 of Collection Gallery

Vase of the Titans: 7 of Collection Gallery

Vase of the Titans: 8 of Collection Gallery

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About the Artwork

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Provenance

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Exhibition History

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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Credit Line for Reproduction

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About the Artwork

Early in his career, Auguste Rodin found work in the Paris atelier of ornamental sculptor Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse modeling figures for interior schemes and decorative objects. He remained in Carrier-Belleuse’s employ from 1864 to 1872; four years later, he made his first journey to Italy. There he found inspiration in the expressive physicality of Michelangelo’s work, and he returned with a transformed vision of the human figure, seen in the highly naturalistic male nude, The Age of Bronze, 1876 (DIA 69.304). His new approach is also seen in the monumental proportions and elastic postures of the titans he modeled for Carrier-Belleuse’s polychrome vase. Seated on a plinth, these pre-Olympian gods twist and strain under the weight of the wide-mouthed urn that they support on their shoulders. Garlanded with oak leaves and bright blue skinks, this is one of only two early polychrome versions of the vase known to survive intact. From Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts 89 (2015)

Title Vase of the Titans

Artwork Date between 1877 and 1879

Makers Auguste Rodin (Artist) French, 1840-1917 Albert Ernest Carrier-Belleuse (Designer) French, 1824-1887

Medium Glazed polychromed terracotta

Dimensions Overall: 28 3/8 × 19 3/4 × 19 3/4 inches (72.1 × 50.2 × 50.2 cm)

Classification Ceramics

Department European Sculpture and Dec Arts

Credit Museum Purchase, Robert H. Tannahill Foundation Fund

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 2003.32

Markings

Inscriptions ------

Provenance

David and Constance Yates (New York, New York, USA)

2003-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

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Provenance page

Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

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Published References

Revue de L'Art no. 116, p. 77 (fig. 1).

Choix de sculptures: XVII-XX Siècles, Andre Lemaire and Alberic Froissart, Dealer's Catalogue. Nov.-Dec. 2006, pp. 48-51.

Darr, Alan. P. and Brian Gallagher. "Recent acquisitions (2000-2006) of European sculpture and decorative arts at The Detroit Institute of Arts." The Burlington Magazine 149, no. 1251 (June 2007): p. 454, pl. XVIII (ill.).

Darr, Alan P. "Two newly acquired sculptures by Rude and Rodin in the Detroit Institute of Arts." In La Sculpture en Occident: Etudes offertes à Jean-René Gaborit, ed. G. Bresc-Bautier, F. Baron and P.-Y. Le Pogam. Paris, 2007, pp. 279-283.

Bulletin of the DIA: Notable Acquisitions, 2000–2015 89, no. 1/4 (2015): p. 25 (ill.).

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

Auguste Rodin; Albert Ernest Carrier-Belleuse, Vase of the Titans, between 1877 and 1879, glazed polychromed terracotta. Detroit Institute of Arts, Museum Purchase, Robert H. Tannahill Foundation Fund, 2003.32.