Rodin museum contemplates Chinese sister site

The highlight, though, will be The Thinker in plaster, which was used to model the famous bronze sculpture, perhaps the artist's most renowned piece.

"It's not a project where we simply loan the work and then leave. It's a deep cultural cooperation," says Chevillot, using the agricultural concept of grafting as a metaphor.

She hopes the museum will be built by a Chinese architect and expects to see Rodin's sculptures placed in a Chinese garden. As a nature lover himself, Rodin liked to put his sculptures in gardens.

"What interests me is the different ideas when Rodin is viewed by an oriental culture and the subsequent dialogue created between East and West," she adds.

Although Rodin himself never visited China, his collection includes Chinese art, such as a large sculpture of Guanyin (a Bodhisattva) and a Buddha statue placed in his garden.

The sculptor also enjoyed a very high profile in China.

Liu Libing, an art historian on Chinese sculpture, says that, based on his research, it's Rodin and his student Antonie Bourdelle who influenced many Chinese sculptors. Many prestigious Chinese sculptors have also attributed inspiration for their works to Rodin, such as sculptor Sui Jianguo.

"It's like a dream come true if Musee Rodin China is established," says Liu.

Speaking about the cooperation, Wu Jing, who is in charge of the museum in China, says that she proposed the idea to build Musee Rodin in China to its director Chevillot, a longtime friend of hers.