For those of you not familiar with the Antique Road Show, it is collection of experts in their antique field that travels through out the United States to appraise people's antiques they bring.  The show normally does this inside a convention center and it is aired on the television.  I watch it when I can remember it is on and I am not knee deep in orders.

The reason why I bring this up is I have this notion about the collect ability and worth for any ceramic figurine I do, Santa or not.  This notion is that though the figures are cast from a commercial mold (some being discontinued and hard to find any more) that my highly detailed painting will be worth more then today's purchase price.

Here is why:

1. Today we seem to live in a world where we tend to collect figurines that are mass reproduced; I am talking hundred of thousands.  They are all imported from those foreign companies and have no real indemnifying stamp or signature. They are sold by every Tom, Dick and Harry world wide.  Mine on the other hand are not reproduced in the hundred of thousands every year, if I can paint 10 to 14 Santa figures a month I am doing good.  I sign all the Santa figures with my art name (KKay) and the year it was completed.

2. Most of the figurines offered today are resin and are most likely done in an "assembly line" type of creation, no real "artist" or "craftsman" per piece.   These Santa figures are totally opposite of that scenario, one artist / craftsman.

3. Most of today's figures, even by some of those big collectable manufactures, use the spray paint and decals to achieve the finished piece.  These Santa figures are  hand-painted thus making each unique, not really being a precise duplicate.  The artist spends DAYS adding in all the details per Santa figure and has a certain painting style that can be recognized, without even looking for a signature, immediately by looking at it by the general public and the antique or collectable experts.

In all, my effort to make something of value to you now and 100 years from now is my purpose in doing what I love to do, painting Scottish Santa figures.

You all most likely jumped to this part of the artist interview just to know why the artist does these lovely collectable Scottish Santa figures to specific tartan, here is the answer.

Kelley:

To be truthful, I don't have but .05% of Scottish blood in me even though my family has been researched clear back to colonial times.  My interest in things Scottish started when researching my husband's family lineage. His great grandmother was Scottish born and married a French Canadian x Englishman boy after living here for a while in the States.   His grandmother was born BRUCE and his great great grandmother was a MACQUISTAN (which is a cousin to clan MacDonald).  From this family line my husband is also a descendent of CAMPBELL, MACDONALD, MORRISON, WEBSTER, and POURIE.  He has INNES, YOUNIE, MACCALLUM, MCLEAN, and many others cousins too. I really am still learning all the Scottish tradtions yet I did get some education on who can display a certain tartan (the septs) and how the weavers actually make one.  The making of the tartan helps me break the tartan down in what colors should come first.  It is quite the process to say the least.  I also use the Scottish Authority to check for tartan authenticity, since there maybe several tartans but only certain people or individuals have the right to wear or display them.

In closing about how I am not really a Scotsman... the only place on earth this English / German and French blooded lady wants to visit and explore is Scotland.

How I started painting ceramics is basically being exposed to it since my paternal grandparents operated a ceramic shop for more then 20 years.  I lived next to their shop in my teenage years, for about 10 years and I was over there on a daily bases to visit with them.  To keep me busy grandma would set me up with some bisque and the paint supply needed. I really wasn’t into painting ceramics for sale like I was into doing with normal fine arts then and I moved away from the grand folks when I was seventeen. 

It wasn't until 1992 here in Iowa did I begin seriously painting ceramic figurines.  At this time there were several local shops available and I started by doing a few pieces for myself and to exhibit at the County fair.  When I achieved getting a computer and internet access in 1998 then this part of my business began to take shape.  I started selling wildlife figurines that took me days to do since I wanted to give people realism, I mean fur that actually looked like fur (a several layer and blending situation)  and some Native American figurines.  Back in this time frame, about 2001, I saw the potential of painting a Scottish Santa figurine to specific tartan on his clothing and NO ONE at this time was offering such a thing in the ceramic or figurine world.  It went very well  but my ceramic supplier closed her doors by the following season so I had to stop doing them.   I was unable to find a supplier that would give me a reasonable price on the bisque and the mold company had temporarily discontinued reproducing the mold until last year.   

These days my painting is 90% ceramics and 10% fine arts. And that I have won 1st place ribbons in exhibits for the past 10 odd years for my finished ceramic figures.  In 1998, the traditional Scottish Santa done with the Bruce ancient tartan won first place. I did not have time in 2006 to paint a Scot Santa figurine for exhibit purposes.   All my ceramics, Santa or not, are done to WIN exhibiting.

We would like you to introduce you to our artist and let her speak her mind about all things that matter to her when doing the Scottish Santa figurines. 

In this first part of this interview she will introduce herself.

Kelley:

First things first: I am 40 going on 20 years old, married (for 16 years), and currently do not have any human children.  I love my simple traditional life out in the country and my hobbies include genealogy research and volunteering, gardening, and training animals.

Second I would like to address my art career which basically started from the time I could hold a crayon.  My first art, of course, being abstract art on the nearest wall and I soon bloomed into a contemporary style with elementary school training to stay in the lines.  My first A+ assignment and my first audience critiquing was a Halloween coloring of a witch that had an orange face with purple clothing and a nice bright yellow background setting.  The teacher loved it, my fellow students laughed at it, and my parents hung it on the refrig.  The first critic was a bit hurtful yet I naturally desired to work those colors and marking tools and after years of practice I successfully won my first local art contests by the 9th grade.   With such a good feeling of being probably the best young artist in the area I eagerly requested artist supplies from my parents and began my journeys into trying different mediums.  My parents still have my first oil painting, a floral abstract, and by the age of 18 years old had sold several original painted mirrors (which takes oil based enamel).   I pretty much knew by this time that was going to be my career and turned professional by the age of 20 years old when I was selling most of my finished fine arts to local buyers. Over these 35 odd years my styles changed as I grew, today I bear my own style that taught artists have stated to be a realistic style blended with a touch of impressional and folk.  On ceramic figures I do realistic unless there are areas that I can add in my additional styles.  I will talk more about the ceramic painting art and business in another part of my interview.

KKay's Gifts and Art has expanded the Scottish Santa figurine line and created it as a subsidiary of the main business, a decision that was made November 2008.  The decision was made to help fellow Scottish families to find and order these tartan seasonal figurines and to help us keep better business records.

Since this business is based on the ceramic artwork by it's owner, Kelley Kay Badgerow, and not multiple artists doing the work, pricing is set according to the following: Collect ability (each Santa is signed and dated by artist - the figures are not unique but the artist style and attention to detail is), limited quantity available (again the Santa figures are done by one artist), and the business operation costs.

Our artist is driven, and she is working hard on providing at least 35 to 40 specific clan tartans on our most popular Santa, the Traditional Santa, and makes these available as pre-finished for immediate purchasing.  At the same time we will be taking orders for any of Scottish Santa figurines painted to your clan, family, school, trade or location tartan.