Unless something catastrophic happens, the bronze statue of Stompin' Tom Connors in front of the Sudbury Arena will be around for generations, long after copies of this article turn to dust or are lost in cyberspace.
“They're still finding old Greek bronzes in the ocean that are from 500 BC,” said the statue's creator, Tyler Fauvelle of Lively, who's become known for his bronze sculptures of mostly Canadian historic figures over the past decade.
“They're extremely old pieces. What's unique about bronze is it lasts forever.”
The very permanence of bronze statues has caused Fauvelle's somewhat rarified art form to hit the news a lot lately.
Some groups say statues in the U.S. and Canada of controversial historic figures who took part in racist activities should be taken down. Others say those statues should stay put.
“My opinion, as humble as it is as just some sculptor from Northern Ontario, is that all sculpture, whenever it's created, is part of the history of who we were,” Fauvelle said.
Adding historic plaques to these statutes, and perhaps displaying them less prominently, is the way to go, he said.
“You remove the piece, put it somewhere else, and teach people about it, and be honest about it,” Fauvelle said. “You put it in its context, and teach people about what happened in an honest way so you're no longer glorifying that person.”
As for his own work, Fauvelle said he does months of research on each subject to ensure there's no “dark skeletons” he needs to worry about, although he's quick to point out nobody's perfect.
“A lot of people, when they create these works, they're not thinking about how future generations will see the work,” he said. “I'm very careful about the projects that I do take. I've turned down a few projects.”
The self-taught Fauvelle said his interest in sculpture goes back “so far I can barely remember.” He still has the fired clay sculpture of a dog he created at age eight.
“It's one that I keep at home and I look at once in a while, just to remind myself of where I started,” he said.
Fauvelle's work is displayed in communities across Ontario, including Chapleau, Parry Sound, Timmins, New Liskeard, Penetanguishine, St. Thomas and Sudbury.
Holed up in his studio near an industrial park off Fielding Road, he hand-sculpts each piece in clay before it's cast in bronze in Southern Ontario, a process that's extremely expensive.
His monuments are worth up to $100,000 — meaning communities often fundraise before putting one up — and can weigh more than 1,500 pounds.
“Every one of these monumental sculptures I do, they're all community-driven processes,” Fauvelle said. “Somebody comes to me with an idea.”
The aforementioned Stompin' Tom statue was erected in front of the Sudbury Arena in 2015, a few years after the legendary musician's death. A group of Sudburians worked to raise $50,000 to cover the statue's cost.
Although not from Sudbury, Connors did pen one of his most famous tunes — Sudbury Saturday Night — back in 1965 after a three-week gig at the Townhouse Tavern, which is a stone's-throw from the Sudbury Arena.
Downtown Sudbury president Jeff MacIntyre, who was on the Stompin' Tom statue committee, said the idea for the statue came about as part of Downtown Master Plan discussions around bringing more public art to the downtown.
The group wanted to work with a northern artist, and were impressed with Fauvelle's previous work.
“It looks amazing,” MacIntyre said. “We've been tracking the social media hits, and it's been shared across Canada by Stompin' Tom fans.”
The sculptor's most recent piece, a memorial of the Afghanistan war, was unveiled in October in downtown St. Thomas, Ont.
“It's a Canadian soldier in Afghanistan,” said Herb Warren, president of the St. Thomas war memorial committee.
“He's sitting on a piece of granite with his rifle in his lap, thinking about who knows what. Maybe he's just lost a buddy, or he's taking a break, or thinking about home, his wife, whatever.
“That was what we asked Tyler to do, and he did a fantastic job with it. The detail on it is just superb.”
Fauvelle said his personal favourite piece is the bronze statue he created of First World War soldier Francis Pegahmagabow, the most highly-decorated First Nations soldier who served in the 1914-18 conflict.
He said he enjoyed shedding light on Pegahmagabow's story, which not many people knew about before he created the statue.
In what Fauvelle describes as an “emotional day,” the sculpture was unveiled on National Aboriginal Day in 2016 at the Charles W. Stockey Centre for the Performing Arts in Parry Sound.
“I really enjoy sculpting ordinary people who did extraordinary things — stories that people haven't heard before — and trying to bring those stories broader recognition,” Fauvelle said.
