Installed a casting of “The Trooper” a couple of days ago, outside of Santa Fe. We took the piece out of my pickup and loaded it into this 1947 Willy’s Jeep and maneuvered it into position. Good folks, fun ride. Nothing like nature’s vista to enhance a piece.
Category Archives: Cowboys
I got to ride in a 1947 Willy’s Jeep!
“An Eyelash in Bronze”
Would you believe that after being a sculptor (26 years) I am still amazed at the transformation process (the miracle) of how a clay sculpture is turned into bronze. I once went to a foundry to inspect a finished piece. Upon examination, I attempted to brush away an eyelash….only to realize it was part of the piece. The mold had picked up the impression of an eyelash on the clay and it was now cast into metal as part of the piece! Blew my mind.
When every piece I sculpt, I write a “Piece Description”.
“AMERICAN COWBOY”
Sure, there were men who worked cattle decades, if not centuries, before Charlie Goodnight and numerous other drovers crossed the Concho, the Wichita, the Red River, to ‘head beeves north’. Mexican vaqueros new more about roping, branding and riding, generations prior to the iconic ‘American Cowboy’ of yesteryear. That said, the ‘American Cowboy’ did quickly evolve into his own unique living archetype of brashness, moxie, language, etiquette and personal codes to live by. It is amazing that the heyday of the ‘cow men’ (how they truly liked to be referred) lasted a brief twenty years, and yet their impact still defines a lasting image and identity of an entire nation.
Throughout my life, when an image of the ‘Oval Office’ would be shown in either photos, magazines or movies, I’d often see a sculpture(s) as part of the decor. Be it a bust of Abraham Lincoln or Frederic Remington’s “Bronco Buster”, I was always moved by the imagery. After I’d been sculpting a few years, I had a feeling come over me, “I want to sculpt a piece that would be worthy of being on display in the office of The President of the United States. After twenty-five years as a sculptor, “American Cowboy” may be ‘that’ piece.
SCOTT ROGERS
“AMERICAN COWBOY”
24 1/2″ High – Edition of #30
“Whiskey’s Rebel”
I would never consider myself as having been a good bull rider. Never felt I had the hand strength needed to keep a good holt. Over a three year period (1977-1980) I did get on about 165 head. The time dad came up to Colbert, Oklahoma, to watch me ride, I was very grateful, as he ended up driving me to the hospital with a broken back (Kojak was the bull that did a number on me). He said he watched me flop around out in the arena like a rabbit in its death throws.
Can’t believe it’s taken me 26 years, as a professional sculptor, to finally get around to creating a bullrider.
Nothing flips my lid like good dramatic lighting on a sculpture.
There was fell’a who came in to the gallery a couple of years ago and inspired me to create this sculpture. He is the owner of a bull used in the PBR called, “Whiskey’s Rebel.” I love that name for this piece.
My old bull riding gear. Those are dad’s chaps, he used to bull ride back in the 50s. Those are my vintage “Bob Blackwood” spurs.
Here’s a photo of “Whiskey’s Rebel”
“Saloon Keepers Have No Sense of Humor”
I sculpted this piece….just so I could use the title: “Saloon Keepers Have No Sense of Humor.” Believe me when I say….I have no idea what a piece will look like when I start it. I have a feeling that I want….but that’s about it.
About 15 years ago, I took a workshop from Stanley Bliefeld. He taught me a little technique I use often….it’s called sculpting a “bozzetti”. It is a French word for ‘sketch’. About 5-6 years ago, I created a bozzetti, to study compositional elements of this idea. I put my hand in the photo to show you how small the bozzetti is. I made a huge change in swapping out the solid bar to one with barrels and planks. History: Did you know Michelangelo sculpted a bozzetti for his “DAVID”? True! It was found a number of years back.
“SALOON KEEPERS HAVE NO SENSE OF HUMOR”
24″ high x 26″ wide x 16″ deep
Edition of #30
“Saloon Keepers Have No Sense of Humor” Edition of #30 – 23″ H x 26″ W x 16″ D
“Her Hands Know the Old Ways”
I love it when a title and a sculpture merge together as one. When creating this piece, the words came to me and and I felt they were inspired.
She is a Popago Indian in southern Arizona about 1910.
“Towne Ball, 1890”
After I sculpted the 32 inch wide nine player team piece, “Base Ball, circa 1890”, I had many people ask me to sculpt a single figure, So I did. I call this piece “Towne Ball, 1890.”
This piece will be cast in about a year. I’m pokey….. Getting sculptures out.
“A Horse of Course”
This piece was started about a year ago. Built it up…tore it down….built it up….tore it down. Got disgusted with it….researched rearing horses out the wazoo. Looked at 487 pictures of rearing horses. Set it aside for five months. Spent two weeks on it….set it aside again. Would sit in “my sculpture looking at chair” for hours, pondering this piece. Finally saw what was not working…..here is my best effort.
ScottRogersSculpture.com
An honest effort….
“THE FORGOTTEN MAN”
One morning, at 6am, I was brought up short seeing a man sleeping on cold asphalt…..he was embracing a bottle of liquor. Where does the mind go with this? “Pity, shame, judgment, step quick and get away from this human debris.” ”What can I do?” “Should I do anything at all?” “How did he let this happen to himself?”
A gentle realization came to me, it was as if I heard a whisper, ”He’s forgotten”. Not that ‘others’ have forgotten, but rather, he’s forgotten himself and has become an island of misery unto himself. Yes! It may take another to show him the way (be an example), but ultimately it is ‘he’ that ‘must remember’. To remember what? To remember that he can exercise the greatest of all gifts…..the ability to choose differently. He can say, “No” to the past. I have felt for years that within the parable of The Prodigal Son, six words hold a secret: “And when he came to himself….”. Could this possibly mean, “and when he awoke to his divine nature”, or, “and when he let go of his ego mind”. Oh, to say, “I have come to my ‘Self’, surrendered to Divine will, and forgotten the natural man.”
I could have easily called this piece….”Judge not the wounded soul”.
SCOTT ROGERS
13″ wide x 3 1/2″ high x 8″ deep
Edition of #30
Passing on Knowledge
A dozen years ago….my uncle, Grant Speed, shared with me how to sculpt eyes. Today, I passed that knowledge on to another artist.
“Tête-à-tête”, as the French would say. “Head to Head”.
Softness…is the key. And don’t sculpt the eye. Sculpt vision. Sculpt planes. Sculpt shapes. Sculpt your knowledge of the eye…..not what you think you see. And most important of all, sculpt feelings.
6am and on the road….
So, I had the folks at the foundry begin a piece for me. They welded an armature together, put foam over it, trimmed the foam and applied the initial layer of clay. I arrived at the foundry (6 AM) to have them load it on my trailer. I figured it best to drive it to the studio in the cool of the morning. I’m quite certain this piece will be in the clay for about a year before it’s finished. It’s going to be a cowboy riding hell bent for leather on his horse.
I thought it be fun to pull over in Sardine Canyon, south of Logan, and take a picture. 
Another bookend? But why?
It’s a funny thing I’ve noticed about myself over the years. Often, when I come up with a concept that I feel strong about, I have to sculpt the subject two or three times to exhaust my mind “off of it”. Otherwise the idea haunts me. Such was the case with this one…..it is my second bookend. I’m finding I may have a third one in me……of a woman in a chair, as a book end (we’ll see).
I tried to upload a video in this post. I’m not sure if it will work or not.
“Rescue” gets a new patina
“Rescue” gets a new patina.
At the foundry with my patina man, Kike. Going for the European old school look.
Native American or Mountain Man?
Cleaning off my shelves with another idea that has lingered too long. For me, it’s actually common to rough in a piece and get the jest of an idea down and look at it for years….as a clay sculpture. Don’t judge the piece too harshly, I’ve only sculpted on it about five days over the past three years.
The special part about creating this piece is it’s an idea given to me five or six years ago by a client, who has become a dear friend. In his own right, he has the soul of an artist. On numerous occasions I have heard him talk about his love of the arts and weep while doing so.
If you have a suggestion please send it my way. I’m trying to decide if I should make the person in the canoe a Native American or Mountain Man?
The reason I like it being an Indian is I get to show the human anatomy and not cover it with clothing. That’s straight out of my mentor (Fritz White’s) playbook.
My “White House” piece
Long before I began sculpting, I noticed that the Oval Office had sculptures in it. Remington’s “Bronco Buster”, a bust of Abraham Lincoln, until a few years ago, a bust of Churchill.
Once I became a sculptor, I thought, “One day I want to create a piece that would fit the aura of the office of the President of United States.”
In 25 years of sculpting, this may be as close as I’ve ever come.
I call it: “American Cowboy”.
Www.scottrogerssculpture.com
