This sculpture of four monumental portrait heads stands as a memorial to the people of St.Kilda who became dispossessed when they could no longer survive on their remote island off the west coast of Scotland. The head of the elderly man was based on Rae’s grandfather.
An expressive sculpture of a man on the ground pleading with a begging bowl. Carved in response to the famine in Ethiopia in 1994, the bowl fills with water when it rains and dries up when there is a drought.
When Rae found this stone in Kemnay Quarry in Aberdeenshire, he knew straight away it would be an elephant. It is significant that the drill hole in the stone is where the tusk would have been, also that a pink striation in the stone runs down from the eye suggesting a tear.
This work is Rae’s direct response to the plight of the African elephant.
This monumental hand of Christ with the stigmata portrays the hand that suffered on the Cross. The theme of suffering not only features in many of Rae’s sculptures but also in his drawings of Inmates and Down and Outs. Rae donated this sculpture to St. John’s Church.
Granite: 4x5x3ft 2.00 tons. Location: Almond Valley Heritage Centre, Livingston. Sold.
Sheep
Rae has made several animal drawings. This was his first animal sculpture, of which many more would follow.
The Sheep sculpture was exhibited at the Glasgow Garden Festival in 1988 and afterwards auctioned by Christie’s and purchased by Livingston Development Corporation for the entrance to the Almond Valley Heritage Centre.
Carved from a boulder of Kemnay silver-grey granite, Rae wanted this sculpture to look as if it had been carved by the wind giving it a primeaval quality.
It is an appropriate subject for the restaurant as wild boar often featured on Pictish and Celtic stones being a symbol of hospitality and feasting. The sculpture is sited in the new beer garden where it is a talking point for visitors.
Hand-carved granite sculptures in public and private collections