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Bronze Horse Sculpture: Ears Pricked (Standing Horse) by Sue Maclaurin

Bronze Horse Sculpture: Ears Pricked (Standing Horse) by Sue Maclaurin

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Size in cm: 17.5w x 14h x 4d cm
Size in inches: 6½"w x 5½"h x 1½"d
Weight: 1.3kg / 2lb 15oz

Edition: 250
Material: Foundry Cast Bronze

This delightful bronze sculpture captures a horse in a quiet moment, standing in the field or yard, the moment something has captured its attention.

Ears Pricked (Standing Horse) is an affectionate portrait of a horse in a private moment by renowned sculptor and saddle maker, Sue Maclaurin.

We hand cast this sculpture in solid bronze as a strictly limited edition of 250 castings worldwide. Each casting takes over two weeks to make entirely by hand in our British foundry and arrives bearing its own unique edition number. This is NOT made from bronze resin/cold cast bronze!

Each casting bears the artist’s signature, our ‘NF’ maker’s mark and arrives beautifully presented in a carefully handmade presentation gift box, accompanied by a numbered certificate of authenticity that has been hand signed by the artist, all ready to be given as a wonderful gift.

Born in Colchester, Sue Maclaurin emigrated to Northern Rhodesia with her family, where a life-long passion for wildlife and horses began.

Her childhood was spent, when not at boarding school, roaming freely in the bush on horseback, revelling in the diversity of wildlife which still existed at that time.

Returning to England to study at Winchester School of Art, Sue graduated with a B.A (Hons.) in Fine Art and subsequently spent several years involved with Marwell Zoological Park, where she continued to study, paint and sculpt their wide variety of animals at very close quarters. While she was there, Sue was commissioned to create the art work and logo for Marwell Park’s advertising.

During these few years, Sue further explored and develop her interest in sculpting at Pinewood Studios as she was asked by Ray Harryhausen to assist him model making on various films including Clash of the Titans.

An opportunity then arose for Sue to return to Africa with her family, and the following four years were filled happily with the pursuit of varied projects including gold-mining frontier style, fish farming and dairy farming, while Sue continued to sculpt and paint for her own pleasure.

Whilst Africa and its wildlife were ‘utterly beautiful’, it unfortunately became too politically unstable, so Sue’s family once again returned home to England. Her wildlife sculpture was quickly accepted by galleries across the United Kingdom and quickly developed a loyal following of collectors.

A white house in the Wiltshire countryside is now home, with two Siamese cats, two horses, a thriving sculpture studio and a saddlery business that means Sue’s skills as a Master Saddle Maker command a constant waiting list. Sue continues to sculpt both the wildlife that surrounds her home daily as well as other traditional animals such as pigs and thoroughly enjoys hearing stories of the joy that the bronze castings of her pieces bring to collectors.

Creation of your bronze sculpture

Every time we cast a piece, a new mould is created and subsequently destroyed. This means that every single piece of sculpture bought from us is entirely hand made and utterly unique, which is why it is numbered by hand to tell you which casting of the edition you have bought.

1. Mould Making

A silicone rubber mould is made of the original art work. Absolutely every detail captured or missed by this mould will be reproduced in the bronze castings. Depending on the size of the mould, it may then be cut into sections for casting.

This is the master mould used to originate all castings of that piece. Each time that piece is ordered, we follow the following procedure:

2. Making the Wax Casting

Molten wax is poured into the rubber to create an exact wax duplicate of the original model.

3. Chasing the Wax

The wax is removed from the rubber mould any flaws are hand finished by a skilled craftsman.

4. Spruing

Wax rods and a wax pouring cup are carefully attached to the wax casting in just the right positions to allow bronze to be poured in any displaced air to escape. This means that no air bubbles are trapped inside the mould as they would be gaps in the finished bronze piece.

5. Investment

The wax model with attached rods is now covered in ceramic material which will form the mould for the final bronze pour. This is done by dipping the wax model carefully into investment liquid and then covering it in a fine powder before allowing it to cure (completely dry). The model is then dipped into investment liquid again and given a coating of a coarse ceramic powder. By following this procedure several times, a ceramic shell is built up around the wax model.

6. Burn-Out

The wax inside the ceramic shell is then placed in a kiln and fired. The shell bakes and the wax is melted (lost) from the shell. This creates a hollow ceramic shell mould and accounts for the term "Lost Wax" being applied to the process.

7. Casting

The ceramic mould is removed from the kiln and molten bronze is immediately poured into it, at 1200°C.

8. Break Out

Once the casting has been allowed to cool for several hours, the mould is carefully removed by hand from the bronze model inside.

9. Sandblasting

Any fragments of the ceramic shell are removed by sandblasting and the sculpture is carefully inspected at this point.

10. Assembly

All attached rods and cups (which are now bronze) are removed by hand. At this point, any segments of a large sculpture that has been cast in sections are welded together.

11.Chasing

All the weld marks and removed and rod marks are chased and re-detailed by hand. Any scars left by the rods are carefully blended to match the rest of the sculpture’s surface as intended by the artist.

12. Polishing

The bronze is hand polished in preparation for the patina.

13. Patination

The bronze is first heated before the chemical patina is applied by an artist. A patina can achieve many different colours or effects depending on the mix of chemicals used.

14. Waxing

Finally a wax coating is hand applied before the piece is polished to ensure a beautiful lustrous patina.

15. Numbering

Finally, the piece is numbered by hand. It is numbered as the casting number, followed by a slash and finally the edition size. For examples, 5/250 means that your piece was the fifth piece to be cast from the master mould out of 250 castings made. The piece also bears the signature of the artist. Sue Maclaurin pieces are marked either Sue Maclaurin, Sue Mac, or with her insignia of an S and small cat face.

Shipping is FREE everywhere in the world!

All orders are sent using a tracked, insured, express service.

All in stock items are dispatched the working day after we receive your order. Out of stock items will be dispatched on the date shown on the listing.

UK deliveries – next working day - FREE
UK deliveries are shipped by DPD Local, who will send a one hour window to your mobile or email on the morning of delivery so you don’t have to wait around for your parcel.

We use a next working day service as standard (NI, Highlands and Islands take two working days). If you choose and pay for a Saturday or Sunday delivery when you check out (and order before 6am on a Friday), your order will arrive with you the first Saturday or Sunday after you place your order. If you order after 6am on Friday, your order will arrive one weekend later.

If you are in a rush, or need any special arrangements, please call us on 01442 256290 and we will be delighted to help.

All parcels arrive in plain, unbranded brown cartons to help keep the contents a secret.

Deliveries outside the UK - FREE
Deliveries outside the UK are shipped by TNT, who will email your tracking information to you.

We use an express service that will be delivered on a weekday. Deliveries to Europe, the USA and Canada typically take 2 -3 working days, with other destinations taking 3 – 5 working days.

All parcels arrive in Nelson & Forbes branded shipping packaging when sent overseas.

For full details please see USA Shipping / International Shipping

Reviews

Customer Reviews 8 item(s)

Goal!

Overall Satisfaction

My friend's horse-crazy teenage daughter now thinks that I am worth more than an eye roll and a grunt after I gave her a Standing Horse as a gift on her birthday! Review by Terry / (Posted on 11/07/2023)

"Black Horse" with pricked ears

Overall Satisfaction

We absolutely adore our "Black Horse". You really have caught the muscle structure of a horse. It is so beautiful.

Your service was superb with the horse arriving in 24 hours and the packaging just perfect. It was a very special gift I wished to give to my son for his 50th birthday and he was over the moon with it.

My sister also bought the stag to give to him and he was so thrilled.

Thank you so much. Review by Davina / (Posted on 20/11/2021)

A Diminutive Delight

Overall Satisfaction

What a marvelous gift we gave my brother. Sue Maclaurin's horse captures the beauty and grandeur of the noble beast in a size that is easy to display on any side table, mantle or desk top. You will be amazed at the exquisite detail and features. It is fabulous! Review by Ann in Colorado USA / (Posted on 02/11/2021)

Amazing horse sculptures!

Overall Satisfaction

Beautiful sculptures! I ordered all 6 of them! Love them all!! They are all beautifully showcased:)) The artist does these magnificent horses justice:)

Review by Deanna (USA) / (Posted on 01/11/2021)

Standing Horse

Overall Satisfaction

Photo Attached

Review by Mr. J.B. (USA) / (Posted on 03/07/2020)

Gift

Overall Satisfaction

A surprise birthday gift from my husband . Really lovely - thank you Review by David and Helen (Australia) / (Posted on 24/09/2019)

Stunning!

Overall Satisfaction

I have purchased the entire collection of 5 bronzes by Sue Maclaurin.. they are my own personal collection to enjoy..She has captured the realistic motion, movement and physique of horses in each of the sculptures..each horse is a beauty in its own right..I am sure to enjoy them well past my “riding” years..Now I can enjoy a horse, while not “at” the barn...
So happy to have stumbled upon them on the net...Thank you Nelson & Forbes for being a reputable company to deal with outside of the USA...Your service is wonderful..! Absolutely 100% satisfied..! So rare to have that these days...✨ Review by Janice / (Posted on 11/08/2018)

Such a memorable gift!

Overall Satisfaction

I took the standing horse with the pricked up ears out to Spain - it was a housewarming gift for my brother and sister-in-law. They were absolutely delighted with it - totally overwhelmed in fact. Attached is a photo of their horse Apollo with the farrier. The likeness between Sue's sculpture and Apollo is uncanny which is why they have fallen in love with her work!! Thank you so much for enabling me to give them such a memorable gift!