Faun; The Old Tree; The Old Oak Tree, ca. 1885 (casting before 1912)

About the Work

His arms stretched out disarmingly, the faun abandons himself to the caresses of the little female faun as she gazes dreamily at him. In a reversal of the classic gender roles, the mythological hybrid creature of antiquity and the epitome of sexual drive is dominated by his companion. As a couple they look inorganic; the delicate woman is simply placed on the monstrous faun's goat-like leg. Here, Rodin has arranged two individual figures created for his 'Gates of Hell' to form a new group. Liberated from their original context, his sculptures acquired the status of autonomous artworks.