Polar Bear Grande by Sculptor Pompon

Large resin replica of Pompon’s White Polar Bear. François Pompon (1855.1933) was a French sculptor, student of Rodin. Receiving encouragement from Rodin, he produced some stunning works such as the Polar Bear shown at the 1922 Salon d'Automne. By the age of 67, he had become famous and produced many other masterpieces during the last ten years of his career. Pompon made his Salon debut in 1879. He was a pioneer of modern stylized animal sculptures. He was not fully recognized for his artistic accomplishments until the age of 67 at the Salon d'Automne of 1922 with the work "Ours blanc", also known as "the White Bear". Pompon died in Paris, France, on 6 May 1933. Pompon was born in Saulieu in French Burgundy as the son of a carpenter. At the age of fifteen, he is apprenticed to a stonemason in Dijon where he learns the principles of sculpting and attends evening classes at l'Ecole des Beaux Arts.