An Edinburgh blacksmith business has raised £11,000 for the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) after donating a hand forged Viola made out of scrap metal.
Art Fe by K Paxton Blacksmiths, predominantly creates metal sculpture art out of their base in Ratho.
The company was approached by the musical organisation and asked if they would be able to donate anything for a charity fundraising event earlier this month.
RSNO were expecting the blacksmiths to donate an item they had already created, such as one of their iconic metal Thistle art works.
But Kev is not one for half measures, so he decided, along with business partner Cat Stops, to create a new metal sculpture using material from one of their old Chelsea Flower Show trading stands and old farmers fencing wire.
The artwork is made up of tiny Viola flowers that have been handcrafted by a team of eight expert artists at Art Fe.
The strings of the Viola were created using the aforementioned farmers fencing wire.
During the RSNO’s fundraising event - which took place at Prestonfield House last Saturday June 11 - the item fetched £11,000 and will be used to help support the RSNO’s various charity initiatives that include a music programme for the elderly and deprived primary schools.
Cat who co-owns the company spoke to Edinburgh Live about the creation, she said: “We are better known for making thistles and cows with some of our work regularly on display at the Royal Highland Show and the RHS Chelsea Flower Show - you can also find one of our large thistles outside of the Market Street Hotel in Edinburgh.
“We were approached by the RSNO about donating a small item for their fundraising event, so we wanted to make something special.
“As if by coincidence we were already planning for next year's Chelsea Flower Show and had planned to use recycled metal to create instruments for the event.
“The wind bristling in the trees, birdsong and the sound of flowing water are all inspirations for musicians and so we thought it would be good to combine both music and nature as they are so intertwined.
“The musical instrument for the RSNO is made out of salvaged metal and has an environmental message behind it with the reuse of material from last year’s Chelsea Show trading stand and old farmers fencing wire.
“RSNO were probably just expecting us to donate something like a thistle but we felt this required something unique.
“We often support local charities in Edinburgh and Scotland and will always do what we can to help great causes.
“The artwork took 60 hours to complete and was created by a dedicated and skilled team of artist blacksmiths.
“It raised £11,000 for the RSNO at their Midsummer Gala Ball and will go towards supporting their Astar app which goes into baby boxes as well as supporting projects that work with care homes and hospices to bring music to people that have had strokes, as music helps to heal the brain.
“Alongside this, the RSNO will use the money to bring concerts to primary schools across the country so that children who would traditionally not be exposed to classical music can hear it for the first time.
“We do not take on projects to make us rich but just want to pay our staff and give back to our community through Scottish charities and beyond.
“Some of the guests at the RSNO event may not have been exposed to our work previously which was good for us and we also raised a lot of money for the charity as well as made a lot of people happy.
“We love what we do and everything about the business brings joy to us and the people around us.”
Art Fe creates commissioned art works for their clients as well as helping to support fantastic causes.
For anyone wishing to find out more about the business or to place an order for an artwork, please visit their website here.
You can also visit their Instagram by clicking here and their Facebook by clicking here.
