Jerry West Statue Erected-Feb.14, 2007

The Jerry West Statue was installed on February 14th, 2007 at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, West Virginia. I've listed some notes below on the production of the sculpture. You may find them interesting to read...

I have been blessed in many ways- chief among them; a beautiful wife, three healthy children, and a job that I would do even if I wasn't paid for it. Jerry consumed much of our lives last year, and my family must have begun to get a little tired of the presence of Mr. West. Bless them for being so gracious, which they were- they never complained...

I enjoyed creating the Jerry West Statue immensely.The project spanned the entirety of 2006, and what a span it was! There were many times when I had to get down on my knees and pray for guidance. The guidance always came, and the sculpture became something I am very proud of, something that I hope gives Jerry West his due.

This statue is a testament to Jerry West and the remarkable West Virginian that he is. It is an embodiment of his dogged determination to achieve, to excel, to win. It challenges us to hold our standard high, to be the best we can be. And for those of us West Virginians- born or adopted- we can be proud to say that he is one of our own...

See the MSN Sports Net video of Lester's interview at the site!

JERRY WEST STATUE- PRODUCTION NOTES

• The Jerry West Statue project began on May 5^th 2006 and finished on January 20^th 2007
• The statue was cast in the “lost wax” method of bronze casting.
• The clay sculpture began with a welded steel armature on a reinforced wooden base.
• Clay was formed around the steel armature, and refined to the likeness of Jerry West.
• Hundreds of different photographs from the WVU Athletic Dept. Photo Archives were used as sources for the Jerry West Statue.
• Jamie rented an exclusive studio in Morgantown that was so secluded and secret, it was affectionately known as “The Bat Cave”.
• Jamie’s children were very involved in the making of the Jerry West Statue. Jamie and Michelle Lester have 3 children -Hannah, age 9, Everett age 6 and Sophia, age 2. The children were around the studio at different points during the clay sculpture.
• Jamie’s wife, Michelle Lester, is a RN in Neurologyand at Ruby Memorial Hospital.
• The name “Jerry West” became a very familiar name around the Lester house. Our 2 year old Sophia was scared of the larger than life Jerry at first, but as it began to look more realistic, came to feel very comfortable with the sculpture.
• Overall, it took more than 4000 hours to create the Jerry West Statue.
• The Jerry West Statue is made of Everdur Bronze which is composed of 95% copper, 4% silicon, and 1% manganese.
• Coopermill Bronze Works of Zanesville, OH was the foundry contracted to cast the sculpture of Jerry West.
• If the sculpture of Jerry West were to stand straight up, he would be 8 ft tall. In his running stance, the sculpture is 6’ 6” high.
• The statue design is based on the famous photo of Jerry West used for his All American tribute. It also graces the front of the Jerry West Room.
• The clay sculpture weighed more than 600 lbs before moldmaking.
• The approved clay sculpture was molded using polyurethane rubber.
• The molds were then delivered to the foundry to be used in the production of the metal casting.
• The finished bronze sculpture weighs more than 800 lbs.
• The base for the Jerry West Sculpture is solid granite, measuring 7 feet in diameter and three feet high, bringing the total height to 9 and a half feet.
• When modeling Jerry’s Chuck Taylors, I used a pair of Marion Ohlinger’s from Solera that he lent to me for the project.
• Jamie Lester sculpted the Jerry West Statue and supervised the project from beginning to installation. Edmond Yue and Jeff Ryan assisted in the project.
• The Jerry West Statue is 1 1/3 times life size.
• Jamie Lester was inspired by the autobiography “Mr. Clutch: The Jerry West Story”.
• Lester was also inspired by Blaire Buswell’s sculpture of Oscar Robertson.
• Jamie sculpted the Jerry West statue with a variety of handmade wooden tools, steel scraping tools, brushes, and his bare hands.
• The “lost wax” method of bronze casting is thousands of years old. It involves casting a wax copy of the original clay statue, dipping it in a liquid ceramic until a “shell” builds up around the wax. When the ceramic is heated the wax melts out of the ceramic shell, resuting in the name- “lost wax”. Molten bronze is then poured into the ceramic shell. This process is performed by a foundry.
• Lester’s sculpture depicts Jerry West as a Mountaineer in his Junior or Senior years- at approximately 21- 22 years of age.
• Photos from Jerry West’s career as a LA Laker were also used as references for musculature and likeness.