What I have learned, is like this: When I visited Louvre, I went to see Fragonard. You know how much his work is heavy with the mannerism of his time. But, there was a painting depicted as a "sketch", a portrait, done in dark sepia oil. Now, this one was very much like Rembrandt's work, no mannerism there. Very strong and better than all the rest of his paintings I've seen so far. Still, it is just a sketch... Hidden there. It doesn't fit.
So, what the society wants from artists, quite often, is something else, not really the best they can do, but something that suits their specific needs.
Composition like this is very difficult to realize because the gravity center is somewhere between the man and the relatively tiny structure of the rifle-tombstone, strengthened by the pair of boots (I don't remember that boots are laid by the rifle normally, probably added in this case to create some balance).
The girl was not part of sculptor's original idea and we don't know how it really came to this finale, what changes he had to make, probably none. She does look like addition to the composition, but that's what the customer wanted...
As for Rodin quality, that is very hard to accomplish. I saw something in this one, on a picture from a different angle focusing at the arm of the soldier which reminded me of Rodin. The way the sculptor treated folds... Very dynamical and expressive.
Perhaps this guy is much more an expressionist than realist, but people want realism, so he makes compromises.
I would really like to see what Kalat has in his studio, rather than what we see on these photos.
The whole talk about the money really stinks, and reporters obviously didn't have anything else in their empty minds. It is pity they made Kalat "recline" into his room... He was probably afraid of their shining thirsty teeth
