SCULPTORS
BRANDON BORGELT
BRONZE SCULPTOR
Brandon grew up in Johannesburg and always had a very keen interest in animals, collecting all kinds of weird and wonderful pets, from snakes to monkeys. At the age of fifteen, he moved to Durban where he worked part-time at the Dolphinarium and Snake Park. After school, he spent two years in the army and returned to the snake park again. Six months later, restless and full of wanderlust, he took off for the bush where he was involved in a curio venture, game ranging at several private reserves, filming documentaries on lions and hyenas in Botswana and Namibia for National Geographic and the BBC, and eventually wound up managing the crocodile farm at Sun City for twelve years. In 2010 with his very fertile imagination and creative yearnings bubbling to the surface, he decided to give sculpting a try as it was something that he’d always wanted to do, with his affinity for all things Native American, he sculpted a life-size bust of Fool Bull, (Native American warrior and medicine man ) working from a single photo taken well over a hundred years ago. This figure was cast in bronze and set on. His passion to create was now ignited and from that point, it was all systems ‘go’ – In 2016 he started to pursue his passion full time.
BRUCE LITTLE
BRONZE SCULPTOR
Self-taught, instinctual, Bruce Little sculpts to capture the spirit of the wild African creatures he has observed and guarded for most of his life. His technique captures the essential movement and attitudes of his subjects. Born in South Africa, Bruce developed an early passion for the African wilderness through his childhood spent in the bushveld. He became a conservationist and professional game ranger, working at the famous private game reserves of Londolozi and Singita in the South African bushveld. For the following ten years, he lived on a private conservation project in the Eastern Cape where he restored Hopewell, a former beef and sheep ranch, to its original wilderness state. This included the reintroduction of indigenous wildlife to the reserve. The twenty years spent in the wilderness have given Bruce invaluable insight into the subjects he holds so dear. For the past 21 years, Bruce has worked on sculpting his subjects by focusing less on strict anatomical correctness but more on capturing the deeper meaning of the animals he observes. Bruce says “it is natural for every artist to grow and evolve in one’s artistic journey” and as a result, he has started sculpting a series of pieces with a contemporary aspect, which he feels portrays the animals in a different light but still encompasses the essence of the animal's surroundings, spirit and behaviour. In addition, Bruce has added a human element to his works where he attempts to portray a deep indelible bond that we as humans have with the earth and nature. Bruce's latest undertaking has been that of a monumental size lion sculpture which is a commission piece from Ceawlin Thynn, Viscount Weymouth of the Longleat family estate, whom Bruce met during one of his trips to the UK. The piece has been created to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Longleat Safari Park, the first of its kind in the UK. Though he has previously sculpted numerous life-size and larger than life-size pieces, this monumental lion is, to date, his biggest sculpture yet. Off the back of the enormous success of the Longleat venture, Bruce was invited to have the monumental lion auctioned off at the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation Gala event in St Tropez. The event was held in July 2016 where the piece achieved an auction bid of USD1 Million. The funds raised were donated by Bruce to the Foundation which focuses on various environmental projects. Bruce, whose sculptures range from miniatures to life-size and larger, has exhibited internationally for the last 13 years with his bronzes in collections on all five continents as limited editions and private commissions. Bruce is now a full-time sculptor living in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.
CHRIS ROHM
BRONZE SCULPTOR
Sculpture doesn't live in a world of flat paint. It glows in the realism of dimension, shape, form, detail and artist interpretation. Although he has always harboured a creative spirit and a talent for working with his hands, it was by chance that Chris Rohm started sculpting. After a gap year in Europe, he returned to start working in a bronze casting foundry where he quickly developed a real love of the whole process of casting in bronze…it was during this time that he started working on his own pieces. Chris, a self-taught artist, captures the character of his subjects in the timelessness of bronze and is a champion of environmental awareness. “My success as a sculptor is not without difficulties, but every situation provides a learning opportunity. I'll always enjoy sculpting, accepting new challenges, doing work that excites me - that is my future.” One sculpture that is truly close to his heart is the powerful rhino, ‘TAKE YOUR BEST SHOT,’ which symbolizes the hardships the species are going through in order to survive to see another sunset. The sculptured body is armour plated which resembles the struggle of law enforcement and of game rangers in their mission to protect the rhino. The horn is the focal point and takes the sculpture to a height of 440mm. Bullets on the rhino's legs symbolise the struggle of the animal to survive blows from manmade machines that aim to kill. Standing on a pile of coins indicates what little monetary value the rhino horn is sold for in comparison to saving the animal for future generations. Although Chris’s full-time work in the construction trade is a different form of creativity, the sculpting allows him to get lost in his work and create what will become heirloom pieces. “I get so much satisfaction from sitting and figuring something out. When you look again the process has taken over and that piece of clay in front of you has become something else.”
CLAIRE FALCONER
BRONZE SCULPTOR
Born in 1985, Claire Falconer grew up in South Africa, but spent her childhood summers in Zimbabwe, where her parents are from. The concept of home for her became intimate with grass plains, bird calls, and the smells of late-afternoon thunder storms. After almost a decade of travel (mostly in Asia), it was these sense memories which brought her to settle on a wild grassland beneath the Drakensberg in Kwazulu-Natal. There she built her home and studios, where she creates sculptures using the lost-wax casting technique. The established and runs The Falconer Foundry with her husband, who is also a sculptor. They work with their team to cast sculptures for several well-known sculptors, who have formed an inspiring circle of mentors as Claire has built her own portfolio. Nature continues to be her biggest inspiration, and constant companion.
LUNGISA KALA
BRONZE SCULPTOR
Lungisa Kala was born near Willowvale in the Eastern Cape and moved to Cape Town in 2003, where he started work as a fettler in a bronze art foundry. Here Lungisa was exposed to the process and techniques used in creating bronze sculptures and gathered valuable skills in working on detailed art pieces. Lungisa completed various courses in both Tool and Die making and Welding to further his technical skills. Over the past few years, he has assisted various artists and been part of a team of sculptors commissioned to work on pieces ranging from 40cm to life sizes and up to 9m monumental statues as well as creating miniature sets for a television commercial. Lungisa was part of a mentorship program run by the National Heritage Project Company where he was given the opportunity to create his own life-size figure from concept to final bronze sculpture. In between working on commissioned artworks, Lungisa now runs his own fettling workshop, but it has always been his ambition to create his own series of sculptures. Lungisa is currently sculpting a collection of personal works of small bronzes, focusing on wildlife as well as re-creating memories of rural life from his past. Lungisa believes that to achieve anything requires faith, belief in oneself, determination, vision, hard work and dedication! Which he has in bucket loads!
MICHAEL CANADAS
BRONZE SCULPTOR
Michaels works are born from his inherent love and passion for nature, not only Wild life but the ancient peoples and cultures that came before him. From an early age he was exposed to the outdoors, in particular the African-bush. Growing up on the doorstep of the World Famous Kruger National Park, This is where his passion for Africa and its extremes grew even stronger. After matriculating he finished a series of diplomas in Wild Life Management and game capture, as well as a degree in Nature Conservation. His passion for art however led him in a totaly new direction. In 1998 he started an apprenticeship in an Art Foundry and began his journey discovering the alchemy of bronze. A course on the patination of silicon bronzealso followed by arguably the top patineur in the U.S.A. Patrick Kipper and a bronze castingcourseby Dick Pollock Tallip Foundry in New York. In 2000 he started his own casting foundry, Bronze Art Africa formally known as The Loop Art Foundry, which has grown to become one of South Africa's largest and most respected Art Foundries casting for some of South Africa's top sculptors under his management. Thousands of bronze sculptures have been forged at The Foundry from thumb size to some of the most noted monuments in Africa. Michael is a self taught artist. Personally he started work on his own sculpture, building up a significant body of work. His work has been shown internationally by the top galleries in Maputo, Mozambique, Kulumgwana and the Alliance France, Fine art bronze collectors from the U.S.A, U.K, Netherlands, Denmark, Russia, Mozambique, Singapore. The United Arab Emirates, France, Germany, Canada and South Africa. He has also received numerous commissions from private collectors as well as Corporate companies and organizations including The Kruger National Park and Extrata Platinum Mines. All these Commissions were for life size sculptures, including Sable Antelope, Eland, and various life size birds of prey. Michael has also taken part in numerous exhibitions both nationally and internationally. ARTIST STATEMENT "Within every new piece I trace my own evolution and learning processes, as I try to capture the specific essence and moment in time in the life of my subject. I try to retain the beginning strokes and gestures of each sculpture, because that to me contains the excitement and truth of the creative process. MICHAEL CANADAS”
SARAH RICHARDS
BRONZE SCULPTOR
Sarah Richards was born in Durban; her childhood was spent in various places around Southern Africa. She returned to Durban to study Fine Art, majoring in sculpture at Durban Technikon (1985-1990). During the next four years, she travelled overseas to gain experience and insight before returning to Durban to make art and to teach drawing, painting and sculpture to adults and children. She completed her Master’s degree in Fine Art (Cum Laude) at the Durban University of Technology in 2008. Sarah is now living and practising her art in the KZN Midlands. Sarah has been creating bronze sculptures for the past 20 years. Her passion lies in rendering sculpture which shows an attention to detail, and which gives an impression of movement and animation. Sarah explores many different subjects; this comes from her fascination with the details and construction of the world. Inspired by public sculpture and monuments around the world Sarah enjoys the challenge of creating world-class sculptures for the public commissions she has received. Her smaller figure sculptures include children at play, small figures and nudes. The important process of creating each sculpture, and in particular, the early stages of modelling, are an exciting time of discovery. Sarah uses a mixture of media including wax and plasticine which allow fluidity and detail and rough Rhinolite for texture and structure. These allow an adventurous exploration into a deeper understanding of the chosen subject. In this creative process, an intimate relationship develops between subject and artist. The animal and bird sculptures explore Sarah’s love of nature and wonder at the different characteristics of each creature, waiting to be discovered through close encounters and study. The figure sculptures represent an emotional journey in exploring the human form and movement. Sarah is experienced and well versed at executing commissioned tasks; from small coffee table pieces, to portrait busts and monumental statues. She works closely with her client to creatively express their vision in the bronze works she sculpts.
TRAVIS DE VILLIERS
BRONZE SCULPTOR
Growing up in Zimbabwe and South Africa, wildlife, the bush and the love for Mother Africa have always been in his heart. Travis’ sculptures serve as reminders of how beautiful these wild creatures are to anyone who loves them as much as he does. Travis has recently, further developed his art career into bronze sculpture, where he does the majority of his work from memory, drawing from his vast mental library of his works he has created in the past, which required him to capture animals with absolute precision. With more than 15 years of experience, accurate proportions, behavioral compositions and contemporary 3D horns from real specimens are what makes his work unique. His collections are tributes to animals he personally enjoys the most. “My goal is to sculpt nature's most beautiful creatures with a fluid and realistic touch.”
YOLANDI DIESEL
SKULL CARVINGS
Born and raised in South Africa, Yolandi has had a fascination with nature, skulls and wildlife from early childhood. After completing her studies in Human Resources and Labour Law, she stepped into the construction industry in Johannesburg, where she worked for a good couple of years. It wasn’t until 2014, wild at heart, that many roads throughout her life and corporate career lead her to pursue her burning passion which is bone art. Completely self-taught, her work aims to honour the animal after it is dead, to see the beauty in its remains and maintain respect for the life that has been... and giving it a second chance. She carves all her skulls by hand and draws each unique design from scratch, never to replicate her patterns. All her skulls and bones are sustainably sourced, being a true environmentalist, all of the artworks she produces are unrelated to the cause or contribution to the deaths of the animals. She named her creations Calvary Skulls, which is an authentic, artistic brand that capture the hands-on, hand-drawn, real element of the ancient art of bone carving. Imperfectly perfect, Yolandi introduces a sense of timeless, traditional sophistication through nature's sculptures, she likes to refer to her creations as “living wildlife art”. “I pride myself as a self-taught bone artist that specializes in the ancient art of bone carving. I believe in authenticity and upholding traditions, my mission is to offer authentic, hand-carved pieces that are as unique as each individual skull. I discovered that the creation of art from animal skulls of highly appreciated animals supports the ancient beliefs and traditions that we should not waste anything, but instead cherish every single part – a principle that I live by.”
