The Gates of Hell by Rodin - like you've probably never seen it (40,000 + views on tumblr)

So, I was in Philadelphia & I got caught in a storm, a very intense & wet thunderstorm. It was summer so I was wearing shorts and I got really soaked to the skin. I eventually took shelter under a stone arch near some trees. ( I was a bit concerned about the lightning out in the open as the storm was right overhead).

After recording the fantastic sounds of thunder for a while, (I had taken my digital sound recorder to record street sounds for a music concept piece I had envisaged for the trip), I noticed I was standing outside the Rodin Museum. I was intrigued.

I went in thinking I had better dry out before I catch pneumonia. So I paid the modest entry fee and dried out my shorts and feeling refreshed had a look round.

You may not know this but a rich Philadelphian, Jules Mastbaum collected Rodin & also bought the rights to cast a number of Rodin sculptures leaving the city a great legacy in the gift of the museum. It was a very good collection housed in delightful gallery built to house the work.

I have many pictures of the art and will post more here. There were Models for -The Sirens, A version of the Kiss & Eternal Springtime and many more great pieces of work .

So when I was leaving I noticed they had the most incredible doors ever. The Gates of Hell was commissioned for a museum that never opened ! Rodin worked on it for over 37 years. It was originally inspired by Dante but eventually incorporated many of Rodin's most famous motifs. It was black bronze. I looked at it and thought.. the incredible depth won't come out if I photograph it flat.. so I lay on the floor, with my head against the doors and photographed it as if it was a table. Even I was surprised at the results.. This was how I thought it should be seen. More like how it appears if you look closely at it.

I put the collection up on my tumblr page (outerground) and even I was surprised.. it is still popular and has had over 40,000 notes - likes and reblogs. I hope you enjoy as much as I did.