This week, Behind the Booth profiles Vera Bojnec, one of a few vendors at St. Albert Farmers' Market whose table is swarmed as soon as the market opens. By noon, 75 per cent of her garden statues are sold.
Bojnec sells whimsical concrete statuary and collectibles of the four-legged kind that run the gamut from wildlife to domestic animals. The sheer variety, quality and playfulness of each piece, whether it fits in a child’s palm or weighs 30 kilograms (65 pounds), attracts a non-stop stream of shoppers.
“If you come at 10 a.m. when the market opens, it’s like a shark feeding frenzy,” said Bojnec laughing and speaking with a soft, lilting South African accent.
She showcases three tables packed with mischievous, miniature collectibles such as baby owls, hippos wearing jeans and Highland cows with fluffy, mop-like manes. The tables also feature larger critters such as toads, turtles, bears, and bison, reflecting our Canadian heritage.
“Every piece has a take-me-home and love-me face. I try to give every animal I sculpt a sweet face or a grumpy one,” Bojnec said.
Born and raised in Pretoria, the sculptor came to Canada about 20 years ago after receiving a job offer as a computer programmer.
“When I flew in, I’d never seen anything so flat. But I loved it. I fell in love with the mountains. I fell in love with the bison. They are the most beautiful animals,” Bojnec said.
She started sculpting after searching for a reasonably priced concrete statue for her garden. Unfortunately, they were too expensive.
“So, I ordered moulds and made myself garden ornaments," she said. "I discovered I loved doing it so much. I loved the smell of concrete. It was like the smell of mud after a rain.”
Her process appears simple, yet can be quite laborious. She first sculpts the items in clay and then brushes a silicone rubber mould on them. The larger 30 kg pieces are also given additional fibreglass backing, so they don’t collapse.
Once cast in fast-drying concrete, the pieces take several hours to cure. The fast-drying concrete contains an accelerant that gets hot during the curing process, and Bojnec must wait several hours for the heat to die down before tackling the next step.
Once a sculpture has cooled, she trims and polishes rough edges and applies acrylic paint and concrete sealant. A final clear coat of sealant is applied to withstand fading and cracking from natural elements.
“They can withstand weather, and they can last up to eight years.”
With miniatures are priced as low as $5, Highlands Concrete’s best customers are young children and grandparents.
“I target my prices for them," Bojnec said. "My goal is for everyone to afford something for the grandchildren."
First-time shopper Shem Tremblay stops by carrying Roz, his toddler daughter. They are shopping for fairy garden ornaments, and she points to what looks like a miniature dragon.
Tremblay instead has his eye on a big, ugly toad.
“I like the details. It’s almost abstract and it’s very gardeny,” said Tremblay.
Jeremy Tucker has previously purchased Bojnec's garden art. “The craftsmanship is amazing," he said. "And they’re so unique and long-lasting. You can even set them outside through the winter.”
For Bojnec, forgoing a career in computer programming with a steady paycheque wasn't a safe move; becoming a full-time entrepreneur was risky. But seeing the joy in people’s faces when purchasing one of her sculptures has scuttled those fears, and there is nowhere she’d rather be. And she's a fervent supporter of anyone thinking about taking the leap into opening a business.
“The effort you put in pays off if you have a good work ethic," she said. "The effort you put in pays you back. I encourage all young people to open a business.”
The St. Albert Farmers' Market runs every Saturday on St. Anne Street, St. Anne Promenade and St. Thomas Street from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
