4/24/2023 0 Comments Achroma vanitasIn this epic poem,(most likely written late in his life), Dante related the tale of his imaginary journey through Hell and Purgatory to Paradise, guided by the ancient Roman poet Virgil. The subject of the portal, The Gates of Hell, was drawn from the Devine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (1265 – 1321), and was without doubt chosen by Rodin himself. The story of The Gates begins with the award Rodin received in in 1880, a government commission to produce a “decorative portal” for a museum of decorative arts that was planned for the site of the Cour de Comptes(later destroyed in the Franco – Prussian war). It was inevitable for me to eventually get interested by Rodin’s Gates of Hell, especially considering the fact that I came into contact with his work due to my father’s admiration(which I later inherited as well) for him. I remember curiously browsing the copies of the Divine Comedy that my parents used to have, I used to browse them even before I could read, mesmerized by the illustrations in the books. But I will talk about his favorite sculptor, artist that became one of my favorites as well, and whom I believe to be a great storyteller. I am truly sorry that I don’t have the means of posting pictures of his works. Metaphors of joy and suffering chiseled with a kitchen knife. But he always used wood for the most intimate stories and ideas he wanted to express. Being a cook, he started using dough or pastry to create scenes, representations of wild marine life, or mythological marine creatures so well designed and executed that more than often people wouldn’t know if those things were actually the real deal, or just food. Wood, metal, any spare materials, but the most amazing ones came in the form that was influenced by his profession. He is an amateur sculptor and draughstman so in those days on the sea, he got into the habit of sculpting and drawing and he used basically any materials he could get his hands on, while being on a ship. My father used to tell me stories about his days on the sea, how those days of hardship and isolation shaped him into the man he is now, but my father used to tell stories to himself as well. The stories that we tell ourselves define the potential of our existence. The explanation of the sunset and sunrise, through the story of rebirth of the creator god. We used stories to define our place in the world, or to explain phenomena encountered in our environment like the story of Ra does, the Egyptian deity who would take a journey every night through the underworld, journey at the end of which Ra would be reborn. Since we are young, stories play a crucial role in our development as adults, role that continues after we become adults as well. Stories are an important part of our lives.
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