Early in his career, Rodin began to depict bodies in motion. Rather than working from a canon of static classical poses, he encouraged his models to walk around the studio so he could capture the spontaneity of their movements. He often created fragmentary figures, eliminating extraneous details such as limbs or heads, to focus on the sensation of movement. He believed that bodily movement conveyed emotions, told stories, and revealed aspects of the soul. As he explained “I take from life the movements I observe. I obey Nature in everything, and I never pretend to command her. My only ambition is to be servilely faithful to her.”
Rodin was particularly fascinated with dance and bodies in extreme acrobatic poses—stretching, leaping, and twisting figures. He was enthralled by new forms of dance that moved away from classical ballet in favor of a more experimental language of movement. His enthusiasm led him to meet exceptional figures such as Isadora Duncan and the Japanese performer Hanako (whose portrait is seen later in the Portrait gallery), as well as the dancers from the Cambodian royal ballet.
