We are pleased to share that Woodcarving graduate Borys Burrough has completed his commission of the statue of St Dominic for the French Convent Cours Notre Dame des Victoires.
Since our last update back in the summer of 2022, Borys has been working on the commission to complete the statue in time for it to be up on display in the Dominican Convent for Christmas. We are thrilled to see the pictures of the statue in its new home, kindly provided by the nuns.
The work since our last update has been extensive, starting with Borys completing the carving details on the face, hands, hair, book and drapery of the statue.
Next, he worked on St Dominic’s cross, which he carved from lime wood. The staff was made from a 12mm round piece of oak, which Borys attached the cross to using a brass ferrule. Another brass ferrule was used for the base of the staff. The cross was finished by the process of being gessoed, water gilded and burnished.
The next stage was to paint the statue. Borys sealed the figure with shellac before painting it with high quality acrylics, using pigment and washes of tone to bring the figure to life. Initially, the nuns wanted the flesh of St Dominic to remain unpainted, but it was decided it would be best to paint the flesh in skin tones.
St Dominic’s clothes were painted according to the colour scheme of the Dominican order, known as the ‘Black Friars’ because of the black cloak that is worn over their white habits. The book that he is carrying was painted to look like red leather, with oil gilded details. In the centre of the book, Borys added the cross of the Dominican order. He left this ungilded, so that it wasn’t too prominent a feature.
The statue was complete and ready to transport to France, and it is now in place in the chapel of the Convent.
From the open call and competition to the finished statue, this has been a magnificent project and we congratulate Borys on his exceptional work.
Thank you to the Cours Notre Dame des Victoires and the de Laszlo Foundation for making the commission possible.
The Art School’s extensive links and partnerships with institutions and individuals mean that we have a history of providing opportunities for placements and projects to both current students and recent alumni.
Applications for our BA Carving and MA Carving courses for 2023/24 are now open. Find out more about our courses at one of our upcoming Open Days, held in-person and online.