Aristide Maillol

The most important modern French sculptor after Rodin came to his medium late; this exhibition at the Musée d’Orsay (12 April–21 August) considers how the artist’s early paintings and textiles prefigured the clarity of the form of his statues. The exhibition will explore the transition the artist made to sculpture in 1895, with a particular focus on Maillol’s pivotal encounter with the German collector Count Harry Kessler who would become his patron. The show presents many of the works created for Kessler, including Mediterranean (1905). Providing an insight into Maillol’s creative process, the closing sections of the exhibition focus on how the artist plotted out his sculptures; the highlight is a display of the vast marble work, Monument to Cézanne, along with preparatory sketches. Find out more on the Musée d’Orsay website.

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The Wave, also called Wave Woman or The Bather (1896), Aristide Maillol. Photo: © Musée Maillol, the Dina Vierny Foundation; courtesy Musée Maillol, Paris

Mediterranée (c. 1923–27), Aristide Maillol. Photo: ©RMN-Grand Palais (Musée d’Orsay)/Thierry Ollivier; courtesy Musée d’Orsay, Paris

Young Girl with Veil, preparatory drawing for Dancer (c. 1895), Aristide Maillol. Courtesy Private Collection

Monument to Cèzanne (c. 1912–25) Aristide Maillol. Photo: © RMN-Grand Palais (Orsay Museum)/RMN; courtesy Musée d’Orsay, Paris

The Mountain (1937), Aristide Maillol. Photo: © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée d’Orsay) / René- Gabriel Ojéda; courtesy Musée d’Orsay, Paris