Assemblage: Nude Female Figure in an ancient bowl

From 1895 onwards, Rodin began to incorporate bowls and vases from his collection of antiquities into his own creative work.

In order to create new sculptures, he disassociated the ancient pottery pieces from their archaeological connotations, using them as containers for small figures of female nudes in a wide range of poses―sometimes sitting or balancing on the rim of the vessel, sometimes placed inside. The poet Rainer Maria Rilke, who worked as Rodin’s secretary, described these assemblages as “little floral souls that you bring forth from ancient vases.”

This ancient bowl holds the figure of a female nude leaning forward on all fours in a rather suggestive pose. Partly hidden by the belly of the bowl, she seems to be looking curiously or indiscreetly over its rim to see what is happening outside. The way her feet project from the bowl through a break in its side is typical of Rodin’s skillful use of “accidents.”

The Artwork in the museum

Permanent collections – ground floor, Room 14

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