Camille Claudel & Bernhard Hoetger: the 1905 Exhibition
In partnership with the Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum in Bremen and the Alte Nationalgalerie in Berlin, the Camille Claudel Museum presents an exhibition dedicated to Camille Claudel and the German artist Bernhard Hoetger, whose paths crossed on several occasions in Paris at the turn of the 20th century. In 1905, the sculptor's works were exhibited in the gallery of her art dealer and publisher, Eugène Blot, alongside Hoetger's. More than 120 years later, these two leading figures in sculpture are brought together once more.
At the heart of the exhibition, Claudel’s masterpieces enter into dialogue with the early sculptures of Hoetger, ten years her junior, within a scenography that evokes a fin-de-siècle Parisian gallery. It then contrasts the diverging paths of the two artists after 1905. Caught between a quest for recognition and decline, Claudel struggled to bring recognition to her work, yet saw her creativity wither away and ceased sculpting as early as 1906. Upon his return to Germany from 1907 onwards, Hoetger pursued a prolific career not only as a sculptor, but also as a painter, architect and designer.
Thanks to national and international loans, nearly 90 works – including sculptures, drawings, paintings and photographs – restage the 1905 exhibition. They introduce the life and work of Bernhard Hoetger to the French public for the first time, without shying away from his ambiguous relationship with Nazism, whilst shedding light on a little-known period of Camille Claudel’s career: her final creative years before her confinement.
Opening Hours
12 September – 31 October 2026
Tuesday to Sunday: 10 am – 6 pm2 November 2026 – 10 January 2027
Wednesday to Sunday: 10 am – 5 pm
Closed on: 1 November, 25 December and 1 January
Early closing (4 pm) on: 24 and 31 December
Admission Fees
- Full price : €10
- Reduced rate (for large family cardholders and seniors over 60): €6
- Free : students and young people under 26, museum scientific staff with ICOM or press cards, job seekers, disabled war veterans and their escorts, disabled visitors and their escorts, the first Sunday of the month for individuals.
About the Camille Claudel Museum
Camille Claudel was living in Nogent-sur-Seine with her family when, whilst still a teenager, she asserted her calling as an artist. It was there that she met the sculptor Alfred Boucher, who recognised her exceptional talent, encouraged her, and guided her during her training. The artist’s connection with the town led to the opening, in March 2017, of the Camille Claudel Museum, housed in a building that incorporates her former family home. The museum holds the world’s richest public collection dedicated to Camille Claudel, featuring 45 works that explore every stage and facet of her career. These are integrated into a broader display of 200 sculptures, offering an immersive journey into French sculpture between 1880 and 1914.
