Having the chance to escape Milan for a weekend and visit a friend in Paris, I was prepared for all things French. I expected to be swept into the gaiety of Renoir's Dance at Le Moulin de la Galettee, indulge in a melt-in-your-mouth fresh buttery croissant, and feel the sorry and joy sung soulfully by Edith Piaf. Of course I expected to come across Italian pizzerias by which I would just keep on walking. I was in France; I was there to experience the French culture. After taking in Rodin's evocative and life-like statues at the museum he founded before his death, I was perusing through a guide on his work in the gift shop when I learned that almost all of his significant pieces, the most-popular ones, The Thinker, The Kiss, The Three Shades, The Gates of Hell...were all inspired by and based on Dante and his Divine Comedy. Escape Milan, a possibility. Escape Italian culture--never!
For more details on Rodin's pieces, the captions are linked to their respective pages on Musee Rodin's site.
