It was a delightful little antique copy of the Venus di Medici. Rodin kept it there to stimulate his own inspiration while he worked.
“Come nearer,” he said.
Holding the lamp at the side of the statue and as close as possible, he threw the full light upon the body.
“What do you notice?” he asked.
At the first glance I was extraordinarily struck by what was suddenly revealed to me.
The light so directed, indeed, disclosed numbers of slight projections and depressions upon the surface of the marble which I should never have suspected. I said so to Rodin.
“Good!” he cried approvingly; then, “Watch closely.”
Venus di Medici
At the same time he slowly turned the moving stand which supported the Venus. As he turned, I still noticed in the general form of the body a multitude of almost imperceptible roughnesses. What had at first seemed simple was really of astonishing complexity. Rodin threw up his head smiling.