Chances are if you have seen a scale bronze statue somewhere in Canada of a historical figure – Don and Shirley Begg had something to do with it.
The couple have been running the Studio West Bronze Foundry and Art Gallery for the last 44 years, making everything from pioneer women to heroic colonels to stoic Royal Canadian Mounted Police – they even made the famous Cochrane Legacy statue of woman feeding chickens on Main Street.
“We’ve been very fortunate,” said Shirley, as she discussed the foundry’s history and the statues they have made over the years.
Shirley said they are known for their research and authenticity. She described their great relationship with various museums and historical societies. The Beggs make sure every detail is just right from a button on a coat to the tassels on a shoe.
“If you go to South America and Europe, you see the pride that they have in the important people and they have these statues to honour them,” she said. “Lots of times, we will be standing there to take a picture of a big monument and someone walking by will stop and tell you about it. They are proud of their history. Our history, if we are not careful, is being forgotten.”
Shirley said that this is the reason behind three particular statues done by the studio.
She said her grandmother used to own a small one-roomed store in the Water Valley area when the area was going through a depression. She said her grandmother described the farmwomen who came into her store as those who worked beyond their strengths during that time – something her grandmother found inspiring.
“That really touched me, and she said ‘you know they are being forgotten. Their names are being forgotten and their contributions are being forgotten,’” said Shirley.
Shirley said when her grandmother was over 100 years old, she told her that someone should make a statue of an ordinary farmwoman to commemorate their memory. She looked at Shirley and said, “you make statues, hand me my cheque book” and she wrote out a cheque.
“She said when I die you don’t want a house full of flowers that are dying too,” recalled Shirley, saying her grandmother told her to have people donate to the statue fund and to make a statue of a pioneer farmwoman.
“And when grandma passed away, that’s what we did,” Shirley said.
The Beggs decided they would do three. The first, “Egg Money” was placed in Fish Creek Park in Calgary in 2001, and another by the same name was made for the German Society of Saskatoon in 2005.
The one most familiar to Cochranites is called Legacy and was made for Cochrane’s centennial in 2003, depicting a farmwoman feeding chickens.
All three were funded through Shirley’s grandmother’s donation and donations from the families who wanted the name of a significant woman in their family histories placed on the base statue.
Shirley said these statues represent those early women and the community they created.
“The men, when they first came out here during the early settlement, they were quite happy to live isolated on their little farms and ranches scattered,” explained Shirley. “It wasn’t until women came and had families that they wanted a school, they wanted a church, they wanted a community. It was the women who created the communities.”
For several years, Studio West has been invited to be part of Historical Calgary Week and they will be part of it again this year.
They will be open this Aug. 1 and 2 from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. for people to view works in progress and find out how they make their famous statues.
