Fort Hays State University - Reveille Yearbook (Hays, KS)

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Touch Ptt Felten has ba«n sculpting in this area for almost 30 years. As the sun climbs higher he pulls his hat brim lower. The sculptor squints more tightly to avoid the sun and the shattering fragments of limestone driven by his chisel, Pete felten, a third generation Hays native, has been sculpting in this area for almost 30 years. ff ! got out of the service in 1957. I had always wanted to try sculpting, so I got a rock and tried it ’ Felten said. “It was all just by chance, I guess. I found out that I could sculpt, and the rock was free, so I ' ve been doing it ever since. Felten uses several dif- ferent materials for his creations but has a definite favorite. Ninety percent of my work is done in limestone. I’ve worked with differenl kinds of marble, wood, alabaster and granite, but limestone just kind of suits me, Felten said. It 1 ! easy to work with and h q a great texture. “I don ' t think I ' m psychologically prepared to work with granite, Felten said with a chuckle, It’s just too hard. Felten has his works on display at about 14 loca- tions around town, and has four statues in the Topeka capitoL They exhibit four famous Kan- sans — Amelia Earhart, Dwight D. Eisenhower, William Allen White and Arthur Capper. The statues are eight feet tall and weigh one ton each. “It took four years to complete the four portraits for the Capitol Building, 1 ' Felten said. “That’s the longest it has ever taken me to do anything, but there was so much detail, Speaking of detail, a lot of critics say that all sculptors ' works look like the person who creates them. I suppose that’s true to a certain extent, because when I’m working on some detailed part of the body, like a hand. I’m not going to run out and get a model when I can just look at my own had and sculpt. Felten uses models for many of his works, and says that they aren’t dif- ficult to find. If I see someone that really strikes me as especially interesting, or someone that just makes me wont to sculpt, I ask them to pose for me, Felten said. They can either say ’yes ' or no ! try to sketch them from memory or imagine how they looked. Many of Felten’s ideas come from watching people. I watch people all the time, and just observe everything that goes on around me. That’s where most of my creativity comes from — everyday life. Felten enjoys the accep- tance he has received from the Hays community. I ' m in a very fortunate situation here, Felten said. A lot of people have shown interest in my work. It is really extraordinary. I used to load up the heavy pieces and take them to shows, but now most of my work is kept right here in the Stone Gallery. I have no need to go now. I’m getting all the input I need right here. Sometimes people just come to me with a size and an idea, and I create a sculpture especially for them. Sometimes they come into a little extra money, or just decide that they would like some art in their home, I’ve even had people who remodel their house and make space for a large piece. ”1 always keep a pencil and paper handy in case an idea just pops up, too, Felten said. I kind of like the idea of art being everywhere. 18 PETE FELTEN

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CHEAP TRICK 17

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HKI lUSRMItK ' I wtr m Sculptor Pete Felten carves images out of stone in a garage behind his home, Ninety percent of his work is done in limestone. Warm temperatures allow Felton to work outside the Stone Gallery on a larger piece of work. Feather, one of Felten’s cats, sits beside o sculpture that was made of his image. PETE FELTEN 19