Not Just for Kids Anymore

Transcription

1 Laf n Bear Studios Not Just for Kids Anymore by Bethany Caskey As the typical horse crazy kid, artist-sculptor Lynn Fraley, began her future career in creating model horses when she started altering off the rack horse models by melting, re-sculpting and creating the forms she wanted. A family friend who was a sculptor advised her that she should and could make her own models. Lynn took the advice to heart and in 1992; Lynn officially opened her sculpture studio as a part-time venture, and then dove into full time entrepreneurship in She took many workshops and spent intensive quality time with artists and like individuals with the same passions. Sculptor Veryl Goodnight was a huge influence in the techniques and process Lynn uses today to create a sculpture. The second half of Laf n Bear Studio is husband Barry Moore. After some unfortunate casting Lynn Fraley for Lynn s initials L.A.F. combined with Barry s nickname of Bear. Bear Cast is the name of Barry s casting services. The studios are located in Boise, Idaho. Lynn and Barry say they have found a wonderful niche market that diversifies into the fine art market with model horse sculptures. The culture of model horse collections and collectors has matured and there has been tremendous growth in quality expectations, finer details and better models. Marketing is easier today with the Internet and the opportunity for worldwide exposure. Laf n Bear Studio sells sculptures all over the world. Modern materials like plastic resins make owning a sculpture affordable. Lynn begins a sculpture with an armature built on a configuration of plumbing pipe pieces attached to a stable base. Wire is used to form body, limbs and other extremities. Sculptures are scaled to the mistakes by a contracted foundry, measurements of a living animal. Barry began taking classes and Most of Lynn s pieces are a 1/10th workshops by first learning lost or 1/12th scale. Other sculptures wax and bronze casting. He are as small as 1/24 and stand adapted those methods to produce under three inches tall. A series of the resin and ceramic popular with clay layers build the dimensions of collectors today. He has worked the horse with careful attention to full-time at molding and casting the underlying bone structure and for seven years. The husband and muscle definition. The sculpture wife team have been together must look correct from all angles since they met in Sculpture 101 at and views. Smaller details like ears, Arizona State, in mane growth and eye expression Laf n Bear Studio was named Barry Moore are developed later. As the sculpture 98 Rural Heritage 372_3.indd 98

2 nears completion, details as fine as the growth of the hair pattern are added. It can take years for a piece to be finished. One example is a cutting horse sculpture, which began as a live sculpting demonstration and then was stored on a shelf for five years. A recent issue of a stock horse magazine gave Lynn new inspiration for how she wanted the sculpture to look and she brought the sculpture out of storage to begin work anew. Lynn usually sells her resin sculptures in their original polyurethane plastic finish. Collectors either leave the sculpture natural or many paint and detail the pieces TeeNah and Iko. 8 h x 9 l x 2.5 w inches each. Polyurethane resin. April/May _3.indd 99

3 Backbeat Thunder. 10 h x 14 l x 5.75 w inches. Bronze to their own tastes. Ceramic, earthenware pieces are finished in-house with a wide variety of colored glazes. The glazing Lynn says is a blending of science and art. Some works will go to a fine art bronze foundry in Enterprise, Oregon to be cast in bronze. A recently commissioned bronze, Rocket s Merry Jet, won the coveted Leonard J. Meiselman Award for Sculpture at last year s American Academy of Equine Art Fall Show. Tuesday, a sculpture of a mule began as a demonstration in Lynn s April 2001 Wire to Whinny sculpting workshop; this 1/10 scale sculpture was finished in mid-september, Tuesday is an artistic commemoration of a pivotal event in US history; September 11, 2001 was a Tuesday morning. The original sculpture was completed during the turbulent weeks that followed and is infused with the emotions of that autumn. The draft horse, Backbeat Thunder is both an homage to Lynn s love of New Orleans music and that incredible feeling of rolling thunder that you feel deep in your chest when the draft horse hitches roll by, especially those 8-horse hitches. Nothing like it. You may be more familiar with the plastic model horses that are sold as toys, however, resins and ceramics are delicate, much more expensive and definitely not for children. Common plastic model horses may be purchased for a few dollars compared to sometimes many thousands spent for an artist resin. Limited edition artist resins first began to appear in the 1980s from castings taken from customized Breyers models. By the 1990s, resins were very popular and are much sought after today. Model horse shows are a popular way for collectors to show off their treasured sculptures at actual gatherings or online. The more I learn, the more I want to learn, Lynn stated. She takes advantage of many opportunities that Punjabi and Poudre. 8 h x 8 l x 3 w inches. Earthenware ceramics. 100 Rural Heritage 372_3.indd 100

4 Dandy. 7 h x 8 l x 2.5 w inches. Earthenware ceramics. Dandy is a one of a kind clay body custom, which means that after the damp clay was removed from the plaster mold, it was further manipulated to add the flowing feathers to this piece. Rain or Shine. 12 h x 20 l x 8 w inches, bronze April/May _3.indd 101

5 some might overlook as beneficial by taking classes or workshops like hoof trimming, equine dentistry or full body dissection that will give her more insight into horse anatomy. It is clear that collecting model horses is no longer a childish pursuit. More of Lynn and Barry s work can be seen at lafnbear.com. Bethany Caskey lives in Albia, Iowa. Tuesday, #11. 8 h x 8.5 l x 2.5 w inches. Earthenware ceramic. Rocket s Merry Jet h x 21 l x 6.5 w inches. Bronze. 102 Rural Heritage 372_3.indd 102 3/4/12 11:41 AM