Camille moved to Paris in 1883 in order to further her training as a sculptor. She first studied with Alfred Boucher, then with Auguste Rodin, with whom she had an affair. They are said to have had two children, which Rodin refused to recognize his paternity.
She died in 1943, after having spent 30 years in a mental hospital, without receiving a single visit from her mother nor from her sister. During this time, her brother Paul used to refer to her using the past time.
Some of her sculptures are displayed in a room dedicated to her at the Rodin Museum, in Paris, France.
The motion picture Camille Claudel was made about her life. Co-produced by Isabelle Adjani, starring her and Gerard Depardieu, in 1989 the film was nominated for two Academy Awards.