I was commissioned to do a series of bronze penguin sculptures for Buff Cove in the Falklands by Hatti and Kevin Kilmartin. They bought a 35,000-acre farm in the 70s and now attract thousands of visitors each year to experience the wildlife and beauty of the island. They were looking to have a series of bronze penguin sculptures as limited editions to sell in their gallery and cafe. We decided to focus on King Penguins for this bronze wildlife series. In this bronze, I was looking to capture the sensitivities of mother and child relationships. King Penguins start being sexually active between 3 and 6 years of age. They tend to only mate with one mate per season and they remain together through the season to hatch the egg and care for the young penguin. Mating occurs between September and November and then will return to the sea for hunting. The female penguin will come to shore sometime between late November and January when they will lay one egg and then the egg is incubated for 1 /1/2 to 2 weeks by one penguin when the other will go off to hunt. The egg hatches between 50-60 days and then the baby penguin remains completely helpless for about 50 days. This remains so until the small penguin joins a form of a ‘creche’ ie. other small penguins so they can juggle together and keep one another warm The outline of these two penguins sums up a feeling of protection and love from the mother and adoration and dependency from the baby. The bronze sculpture looks good either sitting loosely directly onto a piece of furniture or on a stone or base.
