Visitors have been making the most of a once in a lifetime opportunity to see Rodin’s classic sculpture The Kiss in Ipswich.
The Kiss, which is on loan from the Tate in London began its residence at Christchurch Mansion in Ipswich this weekend.
The life-size piece will be staying at the mansion for four months as part of the Kiss & Tell: Rodin and Suffolk Sculpture exhibition which is being held in the Mansion’s Wolsey Art Gallery
As well as the towering Rodin work the exhibition also features a collection of other sculptures and drawings from a range of local collections including The Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge and Norwich Castle Museum, as well as those in Ipswich and Colchester .
This includes a wall of unseen nude studies by John Constable and works by Picasso and Michelangelo.
Curator Emma Roodhouse said that the exhibition had given her the opportunity to rummage around in the archive and uncover long forgotten treasures
She said: “It’s a high-quality show which shows how artists have been inspired by the human form and by tales of love and devotion over the centuries.
“Auguste Rodin’s marble lovers depicted in The Kiss are taken from Dante’s Inferno from The Divine Comedy.
“This is a monumental artwork and is a significant piece in the history of sculpture.”
Reaction from those who have already attended the exhibition in its opening days has been hugely positive.
One visitor said:“It’s a fantastic exhibition.
“It’s a massive thing to get such a piece here in Ipswich. It’s a fantastic thing to have here and to see.”
Another visitor added: “He’s magnificent as is she. It was really good.
“I shall be back and bring my daughter. We didn’t have to travel far, it’s great.”
“It was very informative. The sculpture itself was quite impressive. It’s really nice to bring a bit of culture to Ipswich,” said another of the other visitors.
In addition to the exhibition itself there will be a number of artist-led workshops including drawing the figure, a Rodin study day and the curator’s introduction tour.
Kiss & Tell: Rodin and Suffolk Sculpture will run at Christchurch Manion in Ipswich until April 28, 2019.
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