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Gerald Balciar
Gerald Balciar's fascination with animals dates back to his childhood days growing up in rural Wisconsin amidst the dairy farms and northwoods. Art and animals have always been a significant part of his life. He portrays the gentle side of nature in his marble and bronze sculptures.
His repertoire of work ranges from small scale creations to heroic and monumental installations. For reference he works from his extensive library of wildlife material which includes photos, magazine clippings, books, and numerous study casts and measurements. He also uses live models as an invaluable aid in his sculptures.
Balciar is involved in the creative process of bronze making from beginning to end. He works his original sculpture in wax or clay and then personally makes his own molds and sends a finished wax to the foundry. Once the bronze is cast at the foundry, he does the welding and metal chasing and then applies the patina and finishing touches to each bronze.
While doing an 18' bronze elk in 1982, he devised a point up system that revolutionized the traditional enlargement process. His largest bronze sculpture to date is a 20' bronze moose, Centennial, which was installed in Mooseheart, Illinois, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Loyal Order of Moose in 1988. His largest marble carving is an 18', 16,000-pound cougar, Canyon Princess, carved from a single piece of marble which was installed at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City in June, 1995.
He is a member of the National Sculpture Society, Allied Artists of America, the Society of Animal Artists and the Northwest Rendezvous Group.
His work is in the permanent collections of the National Museum of Wildlife Art, Jackson Hole, Wyoming; Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Cody; Wyoming, The Wildlife Experience, Parker, Colorado; C.M. Russell Museum, Great Falls, Montana; Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, Wisconsin; National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and Leanin' Tree Museum of Western Art, Boulder, Colorado.
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