Two of the greats of modern sculpture will be exhibited side by side in a new exhibition at the Henry Moore foundation in Hertfordshire.

The exhibition will compare the work of British sculptor Henry Moore who died in 1986, with the work of Auguste Rodin the French artist, who died in 1917.

It will be the first time another artist will be shown alongside Moore in the gallery and the 70 acres of gardens at the foundation.

The exhibition will include several significant loans from the Musée Rodin in Paris, several of which will be exhibited outside.

The museum has lent Rodin's piece Adam (1881), the third maquette for The Gates of Hell (1881-1882) and Walking Man, Large Torso (1906).

Rodin was an important influence on Moore – who is widely considered to be one of the most important British sculptors.

Moore considered Rodin's sculpture Monument to the Burghers of Calais – which is situated outside the Houses of Parliament – the greatest work of public sculpture in London.

"I began to realise that a lot of things one might be using and being influenced by are, compared with Rodin, altogether too easy. So that as time has gone on, my admiration for Rodin has grown and grown," Moore once said.

The sculptor said of Rodin's work Walking Man: "Walking Man has everything that I love about Rodin, especially his wonderful sense of the human figure."

Moore owned a cast of the work and a selection of photographs taken by Moore of the cast will be exhibited alongside drawings by both artists.

Curator Anita Feldman said: "The relationship between figure and landscape is one of the key themes of this major exhibition, for the first time giving an opportunity to see the work of both artists side by side in Moore’s own surroundings."