Writer's busts

[liamkennedy]

Hello all

I realise this is sort of audacious for a first post, but as I've recently registered for a literature course at Open Uni, I'll probably use this board more often, soon enough, for tips and discussion!
After looking on Amazon and Ebay recently for busts of famous writers and poets as an inspired idea for a christmas present for myself and some friends, I found that there are hardly any at all. And for those which are for sale - busts of Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Dickens etc., they all seem to be either inexpensive and of poor quality or well made but very very expensive. So, I decided to e-mail a few sculptors and find out how much the average custom miniature (4-5 inches) bust would cost. It turns out, to my ill-founded surprise, that good, original busts aren't that cheap either. However, to replicate an original commissioned bust is relatively inexpensive.

So, I'm trying to gauge people's interest in buying miniature or full-sized busts of major writers and poets like Oscar Wilde, Keats, Nabokov, Wordsworth etc. -all of whom don't seem to be widely available as busts. This idea is to see whether I could commission the making of an original bust for myself and pay for it by selling bronze copies.

What kinds of figures are people interested in? Would you prefer them full size or miniatures? How much would you be willing to pay?

Thanks

Liam

[MystyrMystyry]

I confess that I visited this thread because it looked like writer's breasts

Personally I think a lot of writers become writers because of the way they look - if they looked like movie stars then that may've become their vocation

It's almost as though owning a bust of someone who didn't gel with their appearance is doing them a disservice, and being remembered for an aspect they'd rather have everyone not notice and forget, well...

Why not just buy a collection of that for which is what they are remembered? Or even something by some new starving talent who could do with the bikkies (these days they can include photographs of the perpetrators, admittedly in blurry, out of focus, ill-lit locations from unusual angles - but you get an idea of how they'd like to be seen, even if not at at all)

Cheap busts that look cheap may reflect on you and cause you to have to repeat the reasons more often than they're worth. One solution might be to take up sculpture yourself as a lifelong hobby - try it out with some Sculpey first, you might find it's just the expressive release you've been looking for...

[Wildething]

I think that sounds like a wonderful idea!
And in response to what the other user said, i'm sure that liamkennedy already has the collection of a particular writer's work, but is looking for a different way to show his passion.
I would love a bust of Oscar Wilde for my new apartment actually, full-size or miniature.
As for the whole 'a lot of writers become writers for the way they look', I think that's poppycock. And a bit insulting to writers really... :L
But I think that it's a good idea, I for one can't afford an original piece, being a student and what-not. However, a good-quality replica is just what i'm looking for really.
Let me know.
Regards, Danielle

[Stanislaw]

Cool idea, I think the concept could actually become quite popular through an ebay store, or perhaps even an independent website!

However, my bust sized statue of naked Jean Chrétien is all I require (no joke btw, I found it at a garage sale... I think it is perhaps the most brilliant piece of art I have ever purchased).