藝評｜An Artist Review – Camille Claudel

開始懂得欣賞人體藝術之美是透過雕刻藝術，由一部Bruno Nuytten於1989出版的法國電影，《羅丹與卡蜜兒》(Camille Claudel)。在這部電影中，我得以見識雕刻的製作過程以及不同媒材的使用。卡蜜兒(1864-1943)的創作天份與雕刻技巧引起我的注意，她是一位十九世紀才華洋溢，具備天賦與勇敢的雕刻家。

曾經走訪參觀奧塞美術館(Musée d'Orsay)與羅丹美術館。在奧塞美術館，卡蜜兒的《The Age of Maturity(生命之途)》就在羅丹著名的《The Gates of Hell(地獄門)》作品旁，吸引我關注。卡蜜兒曾陪伴羅丹很長一段時間，羅丹是十九世紀最偉大的雕刻家。在羅丹美術館有很多卡蜜兒的雕刻創作。走在羅丹美術館公園，沉浸在這群卓越的作品之中，是一個相當難忘的經驗。

卡蜜兒來自法國東北邊一個富裕的公務員家庭。因為父親對她在藝術上的支持與鼓勵，讓她得以在十幾歲便開使學習藝術與著手半身雕像的創作，十二歲時立志作一位雕刻家。她使親友與僕人當她的模特兒與助手。卡蜜兒在藝術上獨具創意的表達與獨立性，使她成為當代一位相當卓越的女藝術家。然而，她的私生活與藝術作品卻不被大眾所接受。卡蜜兒長期掙扎與對抗藝術界，健康狀況逐日惡化，在精神病院捱過生命最後的二十九年，並且不再接觸任何藝術創作。

卡蜜兒將生命全數奉獻給藝術了，高升至她夢想中綻放，跌落在黑暗裡消聲匿跡。在她的作品裡可以望見她生命的精髓，只可惜，數十年來，她以生命創作的價值被社會忽略與誤解。我很慶幸自己有這個機會，親眼一睹她的雕刻創作。

羅丹該是影響卡蜜兒最重要的人了。在卡蜜兒探究雕刻藝術的期間，羅丹在1880年創作了享負盛名的《The Thinker》。一年之後，卡蜜兒的第一個頗具代表性的雕像誕生《Bust of Paul Claudel at the Age of Thirteen》。卡蜜兒與羅丹相識於1883年，她成為了羅丹的學徒，模特兒，愛人與藝術勁敵。此後，他們的生命與創作息息相關，緊密相繫。

「在藝術裡沒有所謂的醜陋，若有，只是沒有特質，就是說不具備任何外在與內在的真。」─ 羅丹

羅丹挖掘岀的美麗，是平凡的我們習以為常的醜陋。他細緻與有力的雕刻線條，揭露雕像的靈性與特質。佇立在《Hell Gate》前方，專注在每一個形體姿態細節，不久之後我有一種暈眩的感覺產生。不同於羅丹強烈的線條與炫燿美麗的圖騰，我由卡蜜兒早期的作品中看到寧靜與祥和。

Musée Camille Claudel 卡蜜兒美術館

卡蜜兒的作品1
卡蜜兒有許多少女型體的雕像創作，我在羅丹美術館看到的是《La Petite de I’lslette》 (1895, Marble)。小女孩臉上與身體的平滑表面對比頭上強烈的髮線，她的雙眼盯著遠方，不論我站立哪個方向，都好奇著她究竟在望什麼。

卡蜜兒的作品2
卡蜜兒眾所周知的傑作，是羅丹的半身雕像《Bust of Auguste Rodin》(1892, Bronze, 16 x 10 x 11/1/4in)。這件作品的美，在於雕刻的細節完全表達了羅丹的特質與靈性。在這雕像中，深長直挺的鼻型，隨著線條直往他的前額，像是暗示由鼻子所嗅到的引導至頭腦轉化為思想。這座雕像正巧與羅丹的The Thinker呼應，成為兩位天賦藝術家間的共鳴。而這一份與羅丹在情愛關係中的激情，卻將卡蜜兒的夢想與生命燃化為灰燼。

卡蜜兒的作品3
另一件卡蜜兒頗具盛名的作品，是《The Age of Maturity》(生命之途L’Age Mur, 1898, Bronze)擺放在奧塞美術館二樓的轉角，靠近羅丹Hell Gate作品的旁邊。在我尚未得知它是卡蜜兒的作品時已吸引了我的視線。在這座雕像中，男人與老婦相擁，隨身邊泛起的風，像是要逃離至某處，而年輕女子在他們後方跪著祈禱，竭力想握上男人的手。奧塞美術館的前身是火車站，於1977年改觀為美術館，雕像中這種敏捷與速度的表達正巧與在火車站裡感受的一樣。我喜歡這件作品構圖裡對角線的方向，它表現出快速的動作狀態。生命中正有一些時刻，是我們無法躊躇猶豫的，殊不知這一條路徑將引領我們至何處；由此，應和作品的標題－The Age of Maturity。

經由卡蜜兒的雕像創作，我探見藝術的光亮與黑暗面。由卡蜜兒的藝術創作裡的純粹意涵，我察覺出她與羅丹被揭露的戲劇情節。不同於一般的平凡人，或許藝術家就得要在生命中掙扎，使盡全力表達出他們深切的信仰。


課堂報告原文：An Artist Review – Camille Claudel by YHCC
[Course：Art Appreciation]

I appreciated the beauty of the human figure when I saw the art of sculpture in the French film, Camille Claudel, by Bruno Nuytten in 1989. In the movie, I saw the process and the medium used in sculptures. I was amazed by the talent and skill of Camille Claudel (1864-1943), the gifted, brilliant, and courageous female sculptor of the nineteenth century.

Last year, I had the opportunity to visit the Musee D’Orsay and Musee Rodin in Paris. At the Musee D’Orsay, I surprisingly saw The Age of Maturity (1898) by Claudel next to Rodin’s Hell Gate. Camille Claudel was a longtime companion of Rodin (1840─1917), the greatest sculptor of the nineteenth century. There are many of Claudel’s sculptures in the Musee Rodin. Walking among these remarkable pieces and exploring the art in the garden of Musée Rodin was an unforgettable experience.

Claudel was the child of a wealthy civil servant in northeastern France. Because her father encouraged and supported her in art, she began studying art and produced busts while still in her teens. Claudel’s greatest wish at the age of twelve was to become a sculptor. She used her family and domestic servants as models and assistants. As a result of her expression of creativity and independence in art, she became an outstanding female artist. However, her personal life and art piece were not yet acceptable to the public. Her endless struggles against the art world and the deterioration of her health resulted in her spending the last twenty-nine years in an asylum without making any art pieces.

Claudel’s whole life was completely self-sacrificing in art, up to the blossoming of her dreams and down to the silence in the dark. If this was the essence of her life, then it was expressed in her art pieces. It is a pity to see that the value of her art was ignored and misinterpreted by society for years. I am glad to have had the opportunity to appreciate her art in person.

Rodin was perhaps the most important person who influenced Claudel. During her exploring the art of sculpture, Rodin created his most famous piece, The Thinker, in 1880. One year later, Claudel’s first remaining and signed portrait ’Bust of Paul Claudel at the Age of Thirteen’ was made. Claudel met Rodin in 1883 and became his pupil, model, lover, and artistic collaborator. Since then, their life and work were tightly pulled together.


“ There is nothing ugly in art except that which is without character, that is to say, that which offers no outer or inner truth. “ - Auguste Rodin


Rodin discovered beauty from what we normally consider ugliness. He used strong carving lines in every detail to reveal the spirit and character of the sculptures. Standing in front of the Hell Gate, looking at every detail of the figures I feel dizzy after a while. Compared to Rodin’s powerful carving line and the ambitious creation of the beautiful image, I see the peacefulness in Claudel’s earlier works.


She carved several figures of young girls. I saw La Petite de I’lslette (1895, Marble) in Musee Rodin. The surface of his face and body are smooth and contrast the strong carving of her hairline. The eyes of the young girl are staring into the distance. No matter where I stood, I wondered what she was looking at.


One of Claudel’s well-known masterpieces is the portrait of Rodin (Bust of Auguste Rodin, 1892, Bronze, 16 x 10 x 11/1/4in). The beauty of this piece is the detailed carving, which shows the characteristics and spirit of Rodin. In this sculpture, the long and straight nose image leads directly to his forehead. It seems to imply what the nose smells directly to the head transforming into the thought. This sculpture just matches Rodin’s The Thinker as an echo between two talented artists. Claudel spent her life trying to study and understand Rodin. The passion for love in the relationship with Rodin was burning her dreams and life into ashes.


Another of Claudel’s famous pieces is The Age of Maturity (L’Age Mur, 1898, Bronze) It is placed right at the corner of the second floor next to the Rodin’s Hell Gate in Musee D’Orsay. It caught my eyes before knowing the artist. In this sculpture, the man is running somewhere with an old woman. It seems that the wind is carrying them. A young lady is praying in the back and trying to reach his hand. The Musee d’Orsay was transformed from a train station to a museum in 1977. The quickness and speed expressed in the sculpture would be the same feeling that one would have in a train station. I like the diagonal direction line of this sculpture, it shows the fast action. There is no time to hesitate for some moments in life and we don’t know where the path will lead; hence, we accept The Age of Maturity.


Through Claudel’s sculpture, I saw the bright side and dark side of art. I noticed that her unfolding drama with Rodin is found in the pure intention of her art. Unlike ordinary people, perhaps artists have to struggle with their lives in every way in order to express their beliefs.