''Avarice and Lust'' is a sculpture by
French artist
Auguste Rodin, conceived between 1885 and 1887, representing two of the
seven capital sins
The seven deadly sins, also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins, is a grouping and classification of vices within Christian teachings. Although they are not directly mentioned in the Bible, there are parallels with the seven things ...
and is part of his sculptural group ''
The Gates of Hell
''The Gates of Hell'' (french: La Porte de l'Enfer) is a monumental bronze sculptural group work by French artist Auguste Rodin that depicts a scene from the '' Inferno'', the first section of Dante Alighieri's ''Divine Comedy''. It stands at ...
'',
where it can be found in the lower part of the right door.
It's possible that the name was inspired by
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...
's poem ''Après une lecture du Dante'':
Description
The piece is made of several parts: the torso of a falling man, whose extremely long arms encircle a woman who is partially covering her face, while he is reaching for some coins. He represents
greed
Greed (or avarice) is an uncontrolled longing for increase in the acquisition or use of material gain (be it food, money, land, or animate/inanimate possessions); or social value, such as status, or power. Greed has been identified as und ...
. His body is made up with the torso from ''
The Falling Man
''The Falling Man'' is a photograph taken by Associated Press photographer Richard Drew of a man falling from the World Trade Center during the September 11 attacks in New York City. The Unidentified Man in the image was trapped on the upp ...
'', with the arms in a different position, a new head and hair.
Lust
Lust is a psychological force producing intense desire for something, or circumstance while already having a significant amount of the desired object. Lust can take any form such as the lust for sexuality (see libido), money, or power. It c ...
is represented with the female figure offering her body, based on an 1888 drawing by Rodin, titled ''Skeleton embracing a woman''.
See also
*
List of sculptures by Auguste Rodin
This article lists a selection of notable works created by Auguste Rodin. The listing follows the books ''Rodin, Vie et Oeuvre'' and ''Rodin''.
Sculptures
Museums
*Albertinum, Dresden
*Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth
*Art Institute of ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Avarice and Lust
1880s sculptures
Sculptures by Auguste Rodin
Nude sculptures