A Canadian woman’s stuffed teddy bear creation is part of an exhibit at Paris’ prestigious Louvre Museum.
Quebec engineer Maggy-Nadyne Lamarche says she had the idea for Béké-Bobo — the name of her therapeutic stuffed animal — over two decades ago.
“The stuffing inside the bear is a patented secret,” Lamarche said, divulging only that it’s full of Canadian cereals.
Her bears produce humidity and aromas that she says soothe young children, and the proof is that they have sold to hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.
The museum describes the exhibition as the descent of the “the undisputed king of toys,” the teddy bear, on to the Louvre to tell his historic story.
Maggy-Nadyne Lamarche
Curators at the Louvre Museum in Paris decided to include Lamarche’s Béké-Bobo bear in their teddy bear exhibition.
“It’s the highlight of my career to see my products become an art object,” she told Global.
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She says her labour of love was created when she discovered a way to soothe her constantly agitated sick baby 25 years ago.
Lamarche said she researched natural products that could help, and discovered a unique mixture of cereal, when warm, could relieve a child’s stomach, tooth and ear aches.
“It takes about 30 seconds, and the baby will be more calm.”
Initially, Lamarche sold the small stuffed bears only to friends, but her small business picked up and her Canadian-made product sells around the world.
She says when the Louvre emailed her last year about including her bear in their show, she thought it was a joke. “But when I finally saw the bear on display, I felt stunned. I was very proud.”
The My Teddy Bear exhibit began on Dec. 4, 2024, and will go until June 29, 2025 at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in the Palais du Louvre.
The museum describes the exhibition as the descent of the “the undisputed king of toys,” the teddy bear, on to the Louvre to tell his incredible historic story.
The show will look at the history of the stuffed toy and how it earned its place in the hearts of children, “dethroning toys whose existence dated back to antiquity, like dolls or animals on wheels.”
For the full story on Lamarche’s Béké-Bobo bear’s journey to Paris, watch the video above.
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