After growing up on a ranch in Nebraska, Borglum studied art in Cincinnati for several years before moving to Paris where he attended the Académie Julian. Encouraged by Augustus Saint-Gaudens and Emmanuel Frémiet, he exhibited several pieces at the Paris Salons and Expositions (winning an honorable mention in 1899 and a silver medal the following year).

Conceived in 1898, 'Night Hawking' was exhibited at the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo.