Three Shadows, Bronze, 1880, one of Rodin's early masterpieces, held in the collection of the Musée Rodin

Text and photos by Chen Chi-Hsiang. When we visit The Gates of Hell, Three Shadows overlooks us from above. This work represents Rodin’s early study of Italian Renaissance sculptors Donatello and Michelangelo. In this combined group figure, seemingly similar figures and poses are cleverly juxtaposed at different angles, creating a continuous, repetitive form. Their torsos intersect at two points (three heads close together, three wrists merged into one), forming a space of void and solid, concave and convex. Dramatically capturing light and shadow changes, under the theme’s guidance, shadows become the work’s defining feature. (A small version is on the second-floor staircase; an enlarged version sits under the trees on the left side of the garden.)