François Pompon was born in 1855 in Saulieu into a family of artisans where working with materials shaped everyday life. His father was a blacksmith and his mother a seamstress. This early proximity to metal and textile gave him a natural sense of form, volume and precise gesture. He trained as an apprentice stonecutter in Dijon, then entered the École nationale des Beaux Arts where he refined his drawing and modelling. This solid foundation opened the doors of the Parisian s

Walking through Beaune feels like moving through a thought that has taken shape in stone. Nothing here is decorative, nothing is gratuitous.

Lightning on the chapel On Place Ziem in Beaune, you will find the Saint Etienne Chapel, which was formerly the city's Carmelite convent and has been famous since the visit of Louis XIV... The Ars Essentia Art Gallery is located at 9 Place Ziem, right in the heart of Beaune. Today, it is a lovely little cobblestone square, lined with restaurants and cafes, as well as charming shops. But most notably, the Saint Etienne Chapel stands in the middle of the square. This 17th-centu