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Everyone knows who he is. No one has ever seen a piece of his jewelry. He began his earliest training at the Petite École in Paris where he studied drawing and where he flunked out. And so ... necessity being the shield against starvation ... he began a new career as a jeweler and a ceramic painter.
And then he entered the studio of Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse and in his first year completed a work that revealed his interest in naturalism and was promptly rejected by the official Salon as unfinished. Carrier-Belleuse then moved to Brussels ... and our jeweler promptly followed him and formed an independent workshop where he began his struggles to make a name for himself and become recognized in his chosen profession.
It was during a subsequent trip to Italy where our jeweler--no longer a jeweler--became exposed to the likes of Michelangelo and Donatello and classical antiquity. He then created a work so life-like that some thought it was made from the cast of a real man.
I digress for a moment. I am trying very hard not to name the names of his works ... for they are all so well known that each and every one of you would instantly know who he is. This of course precludes the possibility that you all know now anyway. But just in case ... one little addendum ... since his work is so well known ... I have replaced the face of the work I am going to show you with that of my own in a feeble attempt at complete camouflage. The success of this endeavor will only be proof of my adroitness. The heady excitement that this will surely create in all your souls however ... is understandably beyond comprehension. I hereby disclaim any responsibility for any medical condition that might arise from the shock caused by this phenomenon. That said ... I shall continue.
Finally ... recognition. No longer would our jeweler have to hold torch and tweezers in hand. No longer would he have to endure the mundane requests of the hoi-polloi to make them something special for the upcoming affair they were attending next week where they would die ... just simply die ... if they didn't have something nicer to wear upon their bosom than that bitch Marie who always walked around with one of those I'm better than you attitudes. For our Hero--notice he is no longer a jeweler--for our hero received a commission from the French government for the Bronze doors of the Musée des Arts Decoratifs. Dates are omitted on purpose.
And then the citizens of Calais asked our hero to create a monument honoring six men who had sacrificed their lives to end the English siege of their city. Once more his work was criticized ... this time for having depicted the men as victims rather than heroes. And on and on it went. Criticism followed criticism. Once he responded by saying: "My principle is to imitate not only form, but life."
Eventually ... a museum was named after him ... and he became world famous ... as he remains even to this day ... 167 years after his birth. Rather than show you his true work ... I will show you a slight alteration as mentioned above. And since I could find no record of his work as a jeweler ... I created a virtual cufflink in gold ... made from the altered version of one of his great masterpieces. I hope he doesn't mind--wherever he is. It's all done in good sport old man. So now ... do you know who he is? No peeking yet. Let me know.
If you're stumped ... take a look see ... and then let me know. If my visage detracts ... and you still can't figure it out ... let me know that too. All that said ... let me bid you all a fond adieu.
For those of you who are new to this thing called Tidbits...may I direct you to my home page at
And there ya have it. That's it for this week folks. Catch you all next week. Benjamin Mark
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