Fratin was born in Metz, France, on January 1st 1801. The son of a taxidermist and was a highly competent artist and one of the first French sculptors, along with Antoine Louis Barye, to successfully portray animals in bronze. His understanding of animal anatomy, as well as their natural actions and poses, gives his bronze sculptures a life-like realism. Most of his animal subjects appear gaunt with pronounced rib cages, which is what they would have looked like in their natural environment, as opposed to the well-fed zoo animals that were modelled by so many artists. It's fair to say that his true understanding of animal anatomy and form came from his early experiences helping his father with his taxidermy business.
His first studied sculpture under Pioche in Metz, but became disillusioned with the romantic style of the day and eventually moved to Paris, where he studied under the sculptor and painter, Gericault. He first started exhibiting at the Paris Salon in 1831 and continued to do so until 1842, before returning to the famous institution in 1850 and exhibiting for another 12 years until 1862. Like Barye, several of his works were refused entry to the Salon in the late 1830s, because the juries in charge of entries at that time did not consider his new form of animal sculpture to be worthy subjects for consideration as art. While it is not known if this is the reason why he ceased exhibiting at the Salon for many years, many believe this to be the case as Barye also returned to exhibit there in the same year. In that very year, 1851, he also exhibited at the Great Exhibition in London. During his lifetime, he was active in 46 exhibits of his works at the Salon.
Like Barye, he also received several monumental commissions in France and other countries, including the Deux Aigles Gardant Leur Proie, which is still located in New York's Central Park even now. He also cast many of his bronze sculptures for commercial sales during his lifetime and, as one of the earliest Animalier sculptors, his works were cast by many foundries throughout his lifetime. He worked very closely with the Paris foundries that produced his bronzes and many of his casts bear his personal stamp, which has the 'N' in his name reversed. This is an early reproduction of his work.
The bronze sculptures of this artist are all on permanent display in the following museums;
He sadly died in 1864, at the age of 63.