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“LEGEND“

Quite often, the horses men rode during round ups and trail drives would only be about half broke. Often times, a man had to ‘smooth out the humps’ before he could get to work.

Here’s a working cowboy (circa 1880), who, having mounted his horse of a mornin’, gets the ride of his life. Not to mention the ‘show’ he puts on for ‘the boys’. Believe it or not, he’ll probably be workin’ cattle off the same horse a short while later. 

I wanted to create ‘a ride’ that represented the spirit of power, beauty and commitment (of both horse and rider) – a ‘Legend’.

Funny how what someone says is not what one hears. During the first hour of sculpting this piece, a fellow artist came up to me and said, “The last thing this world needs is another bucking horse bronze”. What I heard him say was, “Make it legendary”. I thank him for his comment, which inspired me to press my ability to the limit.

SCOTT ROGERS

Scott Rogers’ love affair with bronze began when he bought a bronze sculpture from his uncle, Grant Speed. Six months later in October of 1990, he came home from work one day, looked at that bronze and said, “I can do that”. He sought counsel at the hands of master teachers, Fritz White CA, Stanley Bleifeld, Herb Mignery CA, Mehl Lawson CA and Grant Speed CA.

“My desire is to use art as a vehicle to inspire mankind to see the beauty of life. Artists are prone to leave emotional fingerprints all over their work; hence, what you’ll be seeing, in a way, are self-portraits. I love how shape, line and form communicate. Every line has a spirit and speaks volumes. Put a lump of clay in my hands and a short while later you’ll know exactly how I feel and physically see my soul. I am finding that the key to life is to develop eyes to see what is really ‘there’.”

Scott Rogers loves what he does and portraying the Old West. “I remember, fondly, the hours spent as a youth reading of renegades, rebels, rogues, outlaws, wild men and horses, ferocity, passion, power, cunning, independence, honor, loneliness, fear, rage, courage and freedom. These words worked their way into my soul and now find expression through my fingers in clay. The “West” was about men and women who had courage, who were part of something bigger than themselves. I find great pleasure in doing these people justice by creating a fair portrayal of their characters.”

“I sculpt feelings and not reality. In fact, to me, the words sculpture and feelings are synonymous. I love it when someone says, after viewing one of my pieces, ‘I can feel the bullet hitting him, I feel like I’m on the back of the bucking horse’ or ‘I can hear the roar of the stampede.’ I know art uplifts the spirit, it makes one want to be better, to feel good about themselves and their fellow man, to reach out for that which is good in life. It’s my wish that you experience some of what I feel through my art.”