Mrs. Russell (Mariana Mattioco della Torre)

Auguste Rodin

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Mariana Russell, the wife of the Impressionist painter John Peter Russell, modeled for Rodin’s sculptures of ancient goddesses. Likely inspired by her evenly proportioned, classical features, the artist portrayed her variously as Ceres, Minerva, and Athena. In 1888 Rodin modeled her portrait in wax; this later bronze cast captures her dignified beauty. Her hair is pulled back, emphasizing her broad jaw, strong nose, and full lips. She appears aloof yet feeling, simple yet intelligent: a woman of depth and character. Rodin often expressed his preference for frank portraiture: "Even the most insignificant head is the dwelling-place of life . . . and so offers inexhaustible matter for the masterpiece."

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.

Metropolitan Museum of Art