He and his wife, Shirley, who is also an expert in the craft, have a passion for Canada’s western heritage in particular.
Their goal is to make each piece as unique and interesting as they can, says Begg, given how long the sculptures last.
“If you’re going to make something in bronze, it’s going to last 1,000 years, and not many people get to make something that will last 1,000 years. So you always do your very best.”
But the news caught the Beggs off guard—they were on a bus in France, on a trip to unveil one of their latest works this summer, when people began to congratulate them.
“I didn’t know what they were talking about,” Begg quipped, adding that the couple had been nominated by some of their clients. “We must be doing something right.”
‘We Never Looked Back’
To craft the pieces, which range from life-sized to more than three metres tall, the molten bronze is heated at nearly 1,204 degrees Celsius.The Beggs use the ancient “lost wax” casting technique, a method dating back thousands of years. This process involves creating a duplicate bronze sculpture from an original model made of wax, clay, or another sculptural material.
Working as a team means they spend most of their days together. “It’s been fantastic,” Beggs says. “It’s like having two brains and four hands.”
Before pursuing art, Begg worked in the oilfields and Shirley was a teacher. A chance introduction to bronze sculpting during a trip to California in 1969 made him fall in love with the craft, he said.
The two quit their jobs, learned the trade, and later opened their own foundry in Cochrane, which also includes an art gallery.
“The rest is history,” Begg says with a smile. “We never looked back.”
Unsung Heroes
Begg says Studio West’s work often honours silent heroes—those who sacrificed to shape the world we live in today.The soldier’s expression is a mix of fear and determination. “It was to show fear of the unknown,” says Begg. “A lot of the people from the Regina Rifles were farm people, farm kids, and some of them were doctors, some of them were lawyers, teachers. They just wanted to go and serve their country to do whatever they could.”
Beauty in the Ordinary
For Begg, heroes are not just found on the battlefield. One sculpture, called “Legacy Statue,” commemorates pioneering women and their role in shaping society through their work as family nurturers. The sculpture was erected in Historic Downtown Cochrane in 2003 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the town.“[It] really tells a story about farm life,” he says, adding that women also managed the family’s resources to ensure everyone was taken care of.
“Even if they had only just a few chickens, there was always food,” he said. “If she sold a few eggs or a little bit of milk or cream, she would have some money to buy fabric to make some new clothes.”
“That’s kind of the start of where we are today,” he added.
Another sculpture depicts a woman baking bread. The seemingly mundane scene, Begg says, can spark in the viewer an appreciation for family traditions.
“Those are things of everyday life, and some people like to tell their family how they baked bread 50, 80, or 100 years ago,” he said. “You [couldn’t] just go down to the grocery store and get a loaf of bread at that time. Everything was made [at home].”
Family Unity
Begg finds it rewarding to create art that depicts families. He says he remembers a time when the family was at the heart of daily life.“Everything was done around the family,” he says. “You didn’t go off here and there and everything. Your whole family was included, your neighbours were included.”
One sculpture, called “Acres of Dreams,” shows a family waiting for a train. The father holds a deed to the land, a piece of paper showing where they were to settle. He, his wife, and two children are all dressed up, with two pieces of luggage containing their belongings.
“When people travelled in the old days, they always dressed up to their Sunday best,” said Begg. “They didn’t go in their flip flops and stuff like that.”
With a mission to keep the old ways alive, Begg has no plans to retire. He says he’ll keep striving to create pieces that will resonate with viewers for years to come.
“If they walk over and they leave with a smile, that’s important,” he said.
