Auguste Rodin (1840–1917) was a French sculptor widely regarded as the founder of modern sculpture. Breaking away from the highly polished, idealized forms of traditional academic sculpture, Rodin focused on expressive realism, emphasizing texture, emotion, and the physicality of the human body. His sculptures often captured figures in dynamic, unfinished, or fragmented states, giving his work a sense of immediacy and vitality. Rodin’s most famous works include The Thinker, The Kiss, and T