realistic sculpture figurine westie highland terrier scotland border fine arts

Description

the adorable vintage westie
hand decorated resin sculpture westie. oh-my-gosh: what a cutie! she has no issues: only ever displayed on a tall shelf. she was made by ray ayers. from below, it could take up to 6 entire months to sculpt the resin master: hence the wonderful outcome. did i mention how adorable and realistic she is? as realistic pieces lost popularity, the company closed in 2016. this piece is dated from 1982. the base is 3 1/2" wide by 2" deep. from the base to the top of his tallest ear is 3 1/2". these are just wonderful dogs, so it makes me smile to just see a representation of one. the statue has alot of information on it. impressed onto the top edge of the base is: «ayers jy» «bfa scotland» and «© 82» (see fourth-to-last image). the base has a satin-finish gold foil sticker that reads (see second-to-last image):
hand made in scotland
by
border fine arts
about john and ray ayres of border fine arts
(from: worldcollectorsnet.com/features/border/ray-ayres/)
it is very fitting that a company which produces beautiful hand-crafted collectable giftware should also be located in the equally beautiful surroundings of the scottish borders. a leading manufacturer of artistic, intricate figurines border fine arts has established itself at the top of the market, with much of the company's success being down to the highly skilled sculptures that turn their visions into reality. it is also because of this company's long running success that master sculptor and designer, ray ayres is able to celebrate his 30th anniversary with border fine arts.
founded by john hammond in 1974 border fine arts is a company that has grown from strength to strength. their innovative, realistic sculptures have proved a huge success since the company started and the demand is high from collectors. originally border fine arts started by making cold cast bronze sculptures and some commissioned silver pieces but this only lasted for a short period of time as a customer pointed out that people «like 'em small and likes 'em painted».
this made john and ray experiment with ideas and they came up with a process called cold casting, which is a white body similar to bisquet fired ceramic and it allows the figurines to be hand painted, thus making them more decorative and eye catching for the customers. today border fine arts is renowned for its realistic wildlife and countryside scenes. both the «classic» range made in langholm, scotland and the «studio» range are filled with licensed character collectable figures and are very popular and highly sought after.
ray ayres' career started when he first joined border fine arts in 1976 after he had graduated from winchester school of art with a ba honours degree in sculpture and print. at this time there were only a few employees and ray was taken onboard to do odd jobs. ray explained to me that his duties included making the wooden plinths, helping with the mould making, casting and finishing of the cold cast bronzes but it wasn't long before he thought «i can do that!» and began working full time as a sculptor.
the first two pieces that ray sculpted were of a rabbit and a hare. ray told me that he remembered that the hare had great success and was well received with collectors. so, he continued to sculpt pieces throughout the 1970s. by the early 1980s cold cast bronze had been almost completely replaced by hand decorated resin pieces and retailers were becoming interested in the delightful figurines that border fine arts produced.
the process to create each figurine starts with Ray coming up with an idea and then either working from digital photographs, or before technology progressed, sketching an idea on paper. the next step is to make it, «maquettes» (3d sketches) are created in order to see all the components that may be needed, then the components of the model are made in wax. this allows ray to work out the shape and either scale it up or down in size. he then starts to sculpt either in clay, wax or plasticine. once he is happy with the design, it is then moulded as a master pattern and the production cycle begins. a new sculpture master can take as long as 6 months to produce from scratch depending on the work involved and the intricacy of the piece, but it usually takes 8 to10 weeks of actual sculpting time, which would explain why each hand-crafted figurine is of the highest quality.
ray has lost count of how many pieces he has made over the 30 years, but believes it to be in excess of 500 models. however, not all of ray's creations have reached production stage as some remain unfinished on a shelf. «things don't always go right, so, if i am not happy then i won't finish them but you never know when these pieces will be resurrected. many years ago i sculpted a red squirrel but i wasn't pleased with the result so it was never launched. recently however, i decided to re-do the piece with a reworked pewter base and it worked».
i asked ray which had been his most demanding piece...«gathering in the strays", as it was my first complicated figurine, with many component parts that all had to fit and work together to make the composition flow.
«this piece was of a border collie shepherding four ewes and lambs back through a collapsed drystone wall. it was very difficult to work out all the components of the piece.» ray had to decide how many pieces he needed to sculpt and through accuracy and skill bring the components all together to produce the final result. «gathering in the strays» was one of the first in the very successful james herriot collection.
ray has also designed and sculpted many mechanical pieces and he remembers that when he came to design his «first tractor» he had no idea how to make it. «i had to tune in to how a tractor worked and what was involved with making all the components for a mechanical piece, but this is what i enjoy most about my job – it's a challenge and i am constantly learning new skills.»
being challenged is an important factor for ray, he enjoys the variety that his work offers and likes to make each sculpture as interesting as possible. «my work allows me to embed my own mark on pieces, and so by imprinting my own style and personality i can ensure that each piece is unique».
ray gets a great deal of satisfaction when a piece is finally finished and finds it even more rewarding when collectors are clambering to buy his work. «collectors are very important to me because they are the ones that love and display my creations, i however, do find it astonishing when my work sells for unbelievable prices on internet auctions but again this is due to the collectors wanting to own the pieces that they couldn't buy when released.» ray's work really does make amazing prices on the secondary market, just recently the jcb «tea break» made £970 but this price is relatively low compared to some of his other works that have realised in excess of £1,000.
ray is constantly coming up with new ideas but he cannot claim the new limited edition piece, «rag, bone, any old iron» as one of his own. this piece was actually inspired by one of the border fine arts salesman who had a childhood memory of the rag and bone man, and kept asking ray to reproduce his memory. eventually ray gave in and the piece was born. «all good things come to those who wait, so i am pleased that the salesman kept asking me to make it. i am very happy with the end result and think it will be well received by collectors».
another of ray's new creations «morning collection» was inspired by nostalgia. with a limited edition of 500, it features a lorry carrying milk churns.
«i started this piece over a year ago, as i wanted to sculpt a lorry instead of the usual tractor. i had a memory from back in the 1960s/70s of the early morning lorry carrying milk churns so started to work on the piece and «morning collection» was the result. i just get these ideas whizzing around my head and at the moment i want to create a few different lorries, all inspired by nostalgic memories.»
the «reversible ploughing» is the newest agricultural piece that Ray has created. it is limited to 1500 and will retail at £395.
border fine arts are renowned for their agricultural sculptures and once again ray has delivered a piece that will excite collectors. he has included the finest detail, so you could easily be forgiven for thinking that this sculpture is a piece of working machinery. «i have to apply myself to everything that i am doing so for example with agricultural machinery i decide whether i want movement, what the composition of the piece will be and the shape and content of the sculpture. i also decide whether it should be of a high definition or softer.» ray applies this practice to all his creations and this is probably the secret to his success as each piece is so realistic you can lose yourself within the sculpture.
the fine artistry that Ray has achieved through his sculptures has captured the essence of the british countryside and in turn the hearts of collectors throughout the world. he excels in all areas of sculpture and design and has over the past 30 years become a highly accomplished artist that commands a respect from collectors which is second to none!
about border fine arts
(from: fabtintoys.com/border-fine-arts)
border fine arts was founded in 1974 in langholm in the esk valley, on the border of scotland and england – hence the company's name. from early on, the wildlife, tractors, sheep, birds and time-honoured ways of life of the region inspired a collection of animal figurines, which, initially, were cast from bronze and silver. Soon, however, as ray ayres, master sculptor, recalls, customers were asking for figurines that were full of detail but were also painted so they were even more realistic. to satisfy this demand the firm became a pioneer of the resin cold cast making process and developed an extensive and exclusive palette of enamel paints that could recreate the subtle shades and tones of each and every subject.
the workforce grew in leaps and bounds to keep pace with the orders that poured in. middleholm was quickly outgrown and premises were found in the town, which in turn were expanded to accommodate demand. border fine arts has now become a household name and leader in the manufacture of superb, lifelike figurines. so much so, that in 1986, border fine arts was honoured to win the scottish business achievement award in recognition of the company's growth and commitment to making a quality product.
in addition to the wildlife studies and farming scenes created for the classic collection, border fine arts now also produces a broad range of collectable figurines and accessories for its studio collection, and continues to develop and manufacture many famous licensed collectable brands such as beatrix potter and winnie the pooh.
in 2006, border fine arts master sculptor ray ayres celebrated his 30th year with the company, and marked the occasion by embarking on a round-Britain tour. both he and the company have come a long way since those tentative first experiments around the kitchen table at middleholm, but the journey has always been one of enthusiasm and discovery. as ray himself puts it, «i don't feel jaded, and I put that down to a high level of job satisfaction…there are always challenging projects in the pipeline to keep me feeling fresh and enthusiastic».
the perfect ethos, in fact, for a forward-thinking company of limitless invention, whose continued dedication to authenticity and quality of workmanship help to explain the success of border fine arts. after being highly successful for decades, a decline in demand for traditional scenes led to the closure of the firm in 2016.
maker's and/or other marks
impressed onto the top edge of the base is: «ayers jy» «bfa scotland» and «© 82» (see fourth-to-last image). the base has a satin-finish gold foil sticker that reads (see second-to-last image):
hand made in scotland
by
border fine arts
dimensions
the base is 3 1/2" wide by 2" deep. from the base to the top of his tallest ear is 3 1/2".
condition
she has no issues: only ever displayed on a tall shelf.
the fine print
the images are the majority of the listing description, so take a look at them closely.
shipping costs have really increased—this is calculated into the buy-it-now price.
i am not able to sell individual items from items i have listed as a group. i just don't have the stamina to create new listings for those. i apologize for that. i haven't initially individually listed items because i don't have enough listing slots to so.
trying to downsize some, though extremely melancholically.
shipping time: i otherwise work more than full time and my health isn't great, so kindly excuse the longer handling time. if i am able to ship sooner, i absolutely will do that
. i appreciate you taking the time to view my listing.