Size in cm: 16w x 14.5h x 5d cm
Size in inches: 6¼"w x 5¾"h x 2"d
Weight: 1.3kg / 2lb 14oz
Edition: 250
Material: Foundry Cast Bronze
Fierce intelligence, a wealth of character, spirit and adventurousness, and not a small amount of willfulness: there was a lot to capture and live up to when Sue Maclaurin began work on this tender portrait of a sweet little donkey!
We absolutely love the final result, and anyone who has ever loved a donkey is sure to recognize their treasured pal in this incredibly endearing sculpture.
Sue has spent much of her life with donkeys and so was very keen to capture every aspect of the personalities she has known over the years. She says, “Donkeys are hilariously entertaining and exasperating in equal measure. I have thoroughly enjoyed watching and sketching them to create this portrait, and I hope the new owners of these castings will love them too.”
Each casting of ‘Standing Donkey’ arrives bearing the artist’s signature, its own unique edition number and our NF maker’s mark.
Arriving in our elegant signature presentation gift box, accompanied by an artist signed and numbered certificate, whether to say ‘happy birthday’ or ‘thank you’ to the donkey lover in your life, this sculpture makes a truly spectacular and thoughtful gift.
(We thought you might also enjoy seeing Sue Maclaurin's original sketch for this sculpture)
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
