Plains sculpture artist adding to herd
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January 2, 2020
Ed Moreth
STILL HORSING AROUND – Kenton Pies applies a coat of cement on his second horse sculpture at his home just east of Plains. "This stuff is tricky, especially under the mane," said the 87-year-old Pies, who plans to eventually have a herd of metal and cement horses on the greenway along Railroad Street in Plains.
The Plains horse sculpture artist is almost ready to get his second steel animal to the greenway. He's working on applying coats of cement to go over the perforated steel and hopes to start staining the project next week.
Pies started on the horses two years ago and began work on the second horse in January with the help of Paradise resident Sig Person, who is also assisting with the third horse, a rearing equine with most of the steel skeleton finished. Pies started putting on the cement coat two weeks ago and hopes to stain it soon and get it positioned on the greenway in early January. The cement coating is applied to the perforated steel with a putty knife and a stucco brush. He said he has to work fast because the special surface cement sets up quickly. He will put two coats on the horse before the staining process.
Pies works about three hours a day on the cement, which he won't apply if the temperature drops below 40 degrees. He has four portable heaters in his shop, a the former barn that used to house a real horse. He hasn't decided on a color for the second horse, but he said it will likely be a paint. The new horse is 9 feet, 8 inches long, 6 feet, 1 inch tall, 2 feet, 5 inches wide, and will weigh about 600 pounds. All but the horse's tail, mane, eyes and ears will get cement coats.
Pies hopes to have the third horse on station later early in 2020. He plans to have a herd of five. It started out to be a for profit enterprise, but changed it to a nonprofit. He continues to look for financial assistance. An account - Wild Horses of Plains - has been established at Rocky Mountain Bank for people to donate.
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