Edgar Degas
Degas's only showing of sculpture during his life took place in 1881 when he exhibited "The Little Dancer of Fourteen Years". A nearly life-size wax figure with real hair and dressed in a cloth tutu, it provoked a strong reaction from critics, most of whom found its realism extraordinary but denounced the dancer as ugly. In a review, J.-K. Huysmans wrote: "The terrible reality of this statuette evidently produces uneasiness in the spectators; all their notions about sculpture, about those cold inanimate whitenesses ... are here overturned. The fact is that with his first attempt Monsieur Degas has revolutionized the traditions of sculpture as he has long since shaken the conventions of painting."
Little Dedo
Little Dedo is, according to a story, a small gargoyle with pointy ears and human-like feet on the roof of Notre Dame Cathedral. According to a story published by Design Toscana, when the cathedral was built in 1160, a nun from a tiny convent in Provence, disliked the menacing gargoyles that were being placed on top of the building as reminders of the nature of sin and evil. As the daughter of a stone cutter, she had learned the tools of the trade and decided to put them to good use. One day, she disguised herself as a workman, gained entrance to the work site and quickly carved the sculpture from a small block before placing it on the highest roof.