Feature
Keith adds detail to the clay original "Stationmaster". He estimates he has put in about half the time he will need to complete the figure, with much more detail still to be added.
Keith McMasters Brings History (Almost) to Life
At the Dayton Art Walk on October 10th, Keith will display his newest work-in-progress – a life-sized rendition of a "Stationmaster with His Companion". The finished bronze sculpture will be placed on the boardwalk outside the Dayton Historic Depot in 2010.
Now that we're nearly ten years into the twenty-first century, it's difficult to imagine a time when people regularly arrived in Dayton by train. But it was common less than a century ago. Passenger rail service was available in Dayton until 1930s. Freight service has been available since, but the Union Pacific Railroad closed its terminal here in 1971.
The Dayton Historic Depot Society has done a wonderful job of recreating the passenger terminal in the old depot at Second and Commercial Streets. Here you can see the passenger waiting room recreated as it looked in the early 20th century.
Now the Depot Society is working on a new project to add even more historical interest to the outside of the Historic Depot. The group is in the midst of fundraising for a bronze sculpture of a Stationmaster with his dog, which will be located on the Depot's wooden boardwalk next to the tracks. The Stationmaster will be holding a timetable checking his watch, and both he and his pooch – standing on a stack of luggage – will be looking down the tracks, watching for the train.
Dayton sculptor Keith McMasters has been commissioned to produce the new sculpture, and is already hard at work. At this year's Dayton Art Walk, on October 10th, Keith will display his work-in-progress inside the Dayton Depot. "I'm really excited to do a major piece that will permanently stay in Dayton," says McMasters. "It really means a lot that people here think enough of my work to contribute financially and help make this happen."
Above: Artist's Renditin, Image
courtesy of Keith McMasters
Above: "Good Medicine" Bronze Sculpture by Keith McMasters
Above: "Indian Summer" Bronze Sculpture by Keith McMasters
Above: "Pronghorn Bonnet" Bronze Sculpture by Keith McMasters
Keith says he's about halfway finished with the clay work on the stationmaster figure. "I still have a ton of detail to finish in the face," he says. "And I haven't even started the hands." The stationmaster will have glasses and a mustache when he's finished. Keith expects to put in at least 600 hours overall, by the time he completes the clay original. Casting the finished sculpture in bronze will take six to eight weeks, he says.
Keith has gained a reputation as one of the top western bronze sculptors in the country. "It's been exciting to be included in some of the collections that we have across the United States" says Keith. "A large number of his sculptures have found homes in Montana and Northern Idaho, and a lot of that presence is thanks to the Coeur d'Alene Gallery." This summer, Keith's work was featured in a solo show at the Coeur d'Alene Gallery in Idaho, a premier western art gallery, and the biggest seller of his work. Keith and his artwork were also featured in the June issue of Western Art Collector Magazine.
Keith knew before he could shave that he wanted to be a western sculptor. "I grew up in a western environment, and my family knew a successful western art sculptor named J. Shirly Bothum, who lived in the Clarkston area near where we did," he says. "He showed me around his studio one time when I was in about the ninth grade, and that was it." Keith was always artistic and, as a kid, he loved to draw. But as he approached his 40th birthday in 2000, his dream of being a western sculptor was still mostly a dream. Until then, he had only created a couple of pieces of sculpture.
Keith had moved to Dayton In 1988 to work at Ski Bluewood as lodge manager. "I loved the resort business and I worked at Bluewood for 12 years," he says, "but I was to the point that if I didn't start my art career now, I never would."
Now married to his wife, Mira, whom he met in Dayton, Keith quit his job in 2000, set up a studio in his house, bought some clay and went to work. "I guess I was in a hurry, because I didn't follow the normal plan for beginning artists," he says. "I started trying to enter top shows before I finished my first piece."
Keith knew he needed to build up a body of work, and he was working hard at it that first year. He was actually able to gain entry into two important shows, based on photos of two clay pieces that had yet to be cast in bronze.
At the Phippen Museum Western Art Show and Sale in Prescott, Arizona in 2000, Keith watched with envy as the overall winner of the best sculpture in the show accepted his award. "I decided right then that I was going to try to win that award the next year," he says.
And so Keith returned to Dayton and started work on his first major piece, called Good Medicine, which depicts a Blackfeet Medicine Man beating a drum. "I created that piece with one goal in mind," says Keith, "and I'm very fortunate that it worked out."
In 2001, less than two years into his full-time career as a sculptor, Keith won the top award in Prescott for "Good Medicine". "It's a prestigious show," he said, "and it opened a lot of doors for me."
In the years since, Keith has produced more than a dozen pieces. The larger pieces are cast in editions of 25, with editions as high as 60 for the smaller pieces. In 2007, Keith opened a gallery and studio at 105 Courthouse Way in downtown Dayton, where he works and displays many examples of his artwork. Visitors are always invited.
Earlier this year, Ginny Butler, museum curator for the Dayton Historical Depot Society, approached Keith about her idea for a life-sized bronze sculpture to be placed on the Depot's boardwalk. "We've talked about putting in some public art at the Depot for many years," says Ginny. "With the newly renovated boardwalk next to the tracks, I got the idea of a stationmaster on the boardwalk, and other people really liked the idea. So right away I went and talked to Keith." Keith's wife, Mira, suggested adding the dog and luggage, and Keith began his design work with those inspirations.
With Keith's design in hand, Ginny went back to the Depot Society to begin plans for fundraising. The group has raised more than $25,000 of the total $77,000 price of the sculpture. They will continue fundraising over the next several months, and they encourage everyone interested in contributing to contact them.
Keith hopes to complete work on the clay sculpture and begin the casting process in early 2010. "They're hoping to have the sculpture placed by Memorial Day," he says. "and I think we can do it."
Keith McMaster's Website: www.keithmcmasters.com
