Portrait of Unknown. New Zealand. / Aime Dupont atelier

Aime Dupont was born in 1841 in Brussels, Belgium. He studied sculpture at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels before emigrating to the United States in 1866. Dupont settled in New York City and continued his studies at the National Academy of Design. Dupont became known for his portrait busts of prominent Americans, including President Ulysses S. Grant and industrialist Andrew Carnegie. He also created several public monuments, including a statue of Revolutionary War hero Nathan Hale in New York City's City Hall Park. In addition to his work as a sculptor, Dupont was an accomplished photographer. He specialised in portraits and landscapes, and his photographs were exhibited at the National Academy of Design and at the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition in 1876. Dupont died in 1900 in New York City. His work is in many museums and public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.