The model for Auguste Rodin’s Saint John the Baptist Preaching was an Italian named Pignatelli.
Rodin encountered Pignatelli in Brussels and was struck by the man’s physical presence and distinctive walking posture. He used him as the model for Saint John the Baptist Preaching, a work that presents the biblical preacher as a forceful, striding figure rather than as a static saint.
The sculpture was exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1880 and helped demonstrate Rodin’s growing ability to convey movement and bodily energy. Its naturalistic appearance contributed to the reputation Rodin was building before The Age of Bronze brought him major controversy.
Pignatelli is easy to confuse with other Rodin models. Auguste Neyt posed for The Age of Bronze, while Jean de Fiennes was associated with The Burghers of Calais and other studies.