Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux (1827-1875), great sculptor of the French Second Empire, is depicted here in the act of creation. Standing dressed in a loose work coat, he wields a ball of modelling clay in one hand while holding the first sketch model in the other. A mallet sits at his feet on the roughly-hewn plinth. In this piece, Antoine Bourdelle is paying homage to the artist and his work. He visited Carpeaux's studio several times and portrays him here engrossed in his work, concentrating on the model he is making.

In the 19th century, sculpture was often synonymous with modelling. Bourdelle had recently left Rodin's workshop where he had been working as a studio assistant, and was entering into the most prolific years of his career. He had the idea of portraying Carpeaux following the commissioning of a bust by collector Jacques Doucet. As he confides in a letter, he was working on an approach involving a synthesis of forms which tended towards expressionism : "In this figure of Carpeaux, I wanted every facet, every fold in the fabric to cast light onto its shadow wherever architectural effect dictates". Bourdelle hoped that this piece would be placed in front of the Opera in Paris, to echo Dance, a sculpture made by Carpeaux in 1869.