A life-sized figure of a nude¹ male sits on a rock with his chin resting in one hand, as if lost deep in thought. The Thinker, the work of French sculptor² Auguste Rodin (1840–1917), has been impressing people for generations. This legendary³ artist gained worldwide fame with his numerous sculptures with a distinct style.

他赤身裸体坐在一块石头上，单手拖住下巴，仿佛陷入了深深的沉思——这座真人大小的雕塑正是出自法国雕塑家奥古斯特•罗丹(1840–1917)之手的《思想者》。它给一代又一代人留下了深刻印象。这位传奇的艺术大师因其许多别具一格的雕塑作品而闻名于世。

The National Museum of China is hosting a retrospective show of Rodin’s creations until March 22, 2015. The show is his largest ever in China and displays 139 classic works created by the progenitor⁴ of modern sculpture. The sculptures are provided by the Rodin Museum in Paris.

（2014年11月28日）至2015年3月22日，罗丹雕塑回顾展在中国国家博物馆举行。此次展出的139件展品都是出自现代雕塑鼻祖罗丹之手，这也是迄今为止在中国最大规模的罗丹艺术展。所有展品均来自巴黎罗丹博物馆。

Departing from the idealism of the Greeks and the decorative⁵ beauty of the Baroque and neo-Baroque movements of the 1600s in Europe, Rodin introduced innovative⁶ practices that paved the way for modern sculpture. Instead of focusing on traditional themes like mythology⁷ and allegory, he modeled the human body with realism and celebrated⁸ individual character and physicality. This was the key to his success and few other artists can rival him.

既有别于古希腊的“理想主义”，也与欧洲17世纪巴洛克与新巴洛克时期的华丽风格不同，罗丹的创新地奠定了现代雕塑的基石。神话、寓言等传统主题不再是他作品的焦点，相反，他以现实中的人为模型，赞颂人的身体和精神。罗丹因此获得成功，成为无人能敌的艺术家。

His genius was to express inner truths of the human psyche⁹. His sculpture emphasized the individual and the concreteness of flesh, and suggested emotion through detailed¹⁰, textured¹¹ surfaces and the interplay of light and shadow. Every part of the body speaks for the whole in his work. Imagine in the sculpture The Thinker, the grip of the toes, the rigidness¹² of his back, and the differentiation¹³ of his hands all indicate the male passion and power.

罗丹的伟大之处在于表达出了人类的深层精神内涵。他的雕塑强调个体性与肉体的具体性；通过细腻而充满质感的表面、以及光与影的运用表达情感。他作品中的每个部分仿佛都在说话。《思想者》就是代表之一：紧缩的脚趾、坚硬的后背、与众不同的两手无不展现出男性的激情与力量。

Unlike many artists, Rodin didn’t establish his distinct artistic¹⁴ style or a credible¹⁵ list of works until he was in his 40s. Rejected by the prestigious¹⁶ art school Ecole des Beaux-Arts three times, Rodin worked as a decorative bricklayer for nearly two decades, from the late 1850s to late 1870s.

与很多艺术家不同，罗丹一直到不惑之年才形成自己独特的艺术风格、并拥有了一系列成功的作品。连续三次被巴黎美术学院拒之门外后，罗丹当了近二十年的砌砖工（从十九世纪五十年代至十九世纪七十年代）。

But later a fateful trip to Italy in 1875 stirred Rodin’s inner-artist. He drew inspiration from Italian sculptor Michelangelo and other sculptors¹⁷ of the Renaissance¹⁸. His first great piece The Age of Bronze was created at that time. Later, he spent much time exploring alternative techniques such as assembling existing fragments. This dedication¹⁹ resulted in creative pieces such as The Gates of Hell, which included several hundred figures.

直到1875年，到访意大利的“命运之行”激发了罗丹内心的艺术渴望。意大利雕塑家米开朗基罗和其他文艺复兴时期的雕塑家给了他灵感。他的第一个伟大作品《青铜时代》就是创作于这个时期。随后，他花费了大量时间钻研各种各样的新技法，比如将已有的碎片进行组合。这些努力成就了他的许多创新之作——比如拥有一百多个形象的《地狱之门》。

He believed that art should be true to nature, a philosophy that shaped his attitudes toward models and materials.

罗丹坚信艺术应是忠实于自然，这种理念影响了他对模特与材料的态度。