The Musée Rodin occupies the Hôtel Biron — a Louis XV mansion in the 7th that Rodin rented from 1908 until his death in 1917, in exchange for donating his work to the French state. The collection runs across the mansion and its gardens: The Thinker in the outdoor garden, The Gates of Hell near the entrance, and inside, the plaster, marble, and bronze works in rooms whose tall windows flood with morning light. The garden in spring is one of the most considered green spaces in Paris — formal enough to be calm, planted enough to be alive. Arrive early on a weekday; the garden crowd builds by noon.
7th arrondissement, Paris, France