Camille Claudel Biography

Camille Claudel was a French sculptor known for her work in bronze and stone. Born in northern France, Claudel's family moved to Paris in 1881, where she became recognized early in life for her blossoming artistic talent and her captivating looks. After honing her craft at the Académie Colarossi, Camille Claudel shared a studio with several other female artists under the tutelage of Alfred Boucher, and later the famed sculptor Auguste Rodin. Rodin became not only Claudel's mentor, but her lover as well, leading her to work in seclusion for much of her life in order to forge her own reputation. While Claudel saw moderate success during her lifetime, securing several patrons and the attention of art dealers, many of her works were criticized and even censored for their sensuality. In 1905, Camille Claudel began to exhibit signs of mental illness, destroying many pieces of her own art and accusing Rodin of conspiring to murder her. After her father's death, she was eventually admitted in a psychiatric hospital at the behest of her brother. Claudel spent 30 years in asylum care before succumbing to illness. Though she destroyed much of her original work, a number of sculptures and drawings survived, establishing her legacy as one of France's greatest sculptors