FRANCOIS POMPON

(1855 / 1953)

FRANCOIS POMPON France (1855) / (1953) "Cosette"

Patinated Bronze sculpture. Signed "F. Pompon" and titled "Cosette". This unique work by François Pompon is marked by the academicism that characterized the sculptor's early period. Presented at the Salon des Artistes in 1890 (no. 4366), it did not receive the official recognition the sculptor sought. However, the realism, the expression of suffering, toil, and poverty in Cosset, the young girl from Victor Hugo's novel Les Miserables, caught the attention of the sculptor Auguste Rodin, who would become his mentor. Pompon worked for Rodin for years, eventually becoming director of his workshop in 1893. Unable to secure the official support that would have provided him with stability and materials, Pompon arranged with the sculptor Leon Persinka and the foundryman Edmond Siot to produce Cosset in four different sizes (1888-1892). It was at this time that Persinka must have acquired the work presented here, unique in this size, which he likely sold around 1900. The plaster cast that served as the model for this sculpture is preserved in the Victor Hugo Museum, donated by the artist himself. Until now, it was believed that the Bronze cast presented here had been destroyed. Attached is a certificate and study by Ms. Liliane Colas dated March 2025. Provenance: -Persinka, Paris, 1890 -Acquired around 1900/07 by the Marquises of Pobla de Claramunt -By descent to the current owners Bibliography: -Liliane Colas and Côme Remy “Pompon: L'oeuvre complète,” Norma Editions, 2025, no. F14, p. 266. Measurements: 128 x 41 x 60 cm.