Medardo Rosso (1858-1928), an Italian sculptor, broke with the prevalent classic and romantic attitudes of 19th-century sculpture and in doing so became one of the first truly modern sculptors. Rosso's work is viewed as being Impressionist, as well as being related to a lesser extent to Realism, Symbolism, and Expressionism.

Rosso was born in Turin, Italy, in 1858, the youngest of three children of a middle-class family. His attachment to his mother seems to have had a profound effect that later appeared in the tender, poetic way that he treated his favored themes--women, motherhood, and children. In 1870 the family moved to Milan, where Rosso spent much of his time in the workshop of a stonecutter. Because he had already decided to become an artist, this experience may have later influenced his having become a sculptor. The three year period of his enlistment in the army, 1879 to 1882, was unpleasant as...