While many of usbrwouldn't see anything particularly noteworthy about dried deer pelvic bones, Southlakebrresident Coye Conner, Jr. sees something special. The nationally recognizedbrattorney, mediator and arbitrator transforms the bones he finds at his Central Texas ranch into beautiful,brone-of-a-kind Indian masks. He calls them “Mystic Masks.” Read on for ourbrQ&A with Conner to learn about his inspiration, how he makes the masks, andbrwhat's next for him.
Southlake Style: Have you always had an artistic side?
Conner: I probably havebralways had an artistic side. I did not recognize it at the time, but Ibrdecorated and did interior design on my own homes. Guests would admirebrwhat I had done in my home and asked if I could help them with their ownbrhomes. So, I wound up doing six of my friends’ homes and threebroffices. It seemed that colors and styles just naturally came to me. That workedbrtogether to blend the projectbrtogether.
SS: What inspired you to start turning deer bones intobrmasks?
Conner: My inspirationbrfor turning deer pelvic bones into masks originates from my curiosity andbrability to envision creative uses for items – far different than their intendedbrpurpose. For example, I used a 1949 Ford truck hood as my vent-a-hood in thebrkitchen of my man cave at my Hill Country ranch. I was walking at my ranchbra couple of years ago looking for shed deer antlers, and came upon a deer thatbrhad been dead for years. All that was left was the skeleton, bleached whitebrfrom the weather and time. I looked at the backbone and saw the pelvicbrbone intact. I picked it up and realized how much it resembled a mask ofbrsome sort. I wondered what I could do with it. I worked on it withbrthe limited supply of paint and items I had at that time.
SS: It’s such a unique art – what do you enjoy mostbrabout it?
Conner: The thing Ibrenjoy most about it is the sanity break that it allows me to take from mybrnormal hectic business of mediating and arbitrating lawsuits. Recently, my almabrmater, Baylor, was playing basketball in the final 64. It was the firstbrgame of the tournament for them, starting at 10:30 on a Thursday morning. Mybrwife and I were at the ranch, had breakfast, and I told her that I was going tobrthe shop for an hour or so to work on masks, but that I would be back in abrcouple of hours to watch the game. My foreman came up after a time andbrsaid: “Thought you were going to watch the Bears play.” It was 4:30 in thebrafternoon! I had been at the shop working on a mask for eight hours and neverbrrealizedbrit.
SS: How do you prepare the bones before working withbrthem?
Conner: I put fourbrgallons of bleach in a plastic bucket, put four to five of the bones in thebrsolution, stir for a few minutes, then let it set for a couple of hours. Ibrpour off the bleach and then rinse with well water, and let the water stand inbrthe bucket with the bones overnight. The bones then are clean and ready tobrbegin the process of becoming a mask.
SS: Where do you find your inspiration for each mask?
Conner: My inspirationbrfor each mask is uniquely different. Some are created from a thought thatbrI had. Once, I couldn’t sleep after I woke up at 3 a.m. because I had anbridea for a new mask. I got out of bed and went to the shop and worked onbrthe idea until breakfast.
One mask I visualizedbrChrist on the cross, and did a mask from that vision. I went around mybrranch until I found some rusty barbwire and made the Crown of Thorns from thebrbarbwire. One side of the mask is painted gold, representing the streetsbrof gold in heaven. The other side is multi-colored, representing all thebrnations of the world. I dripped some red acrylic paint down on the maskbrfrom the crown of thorns, representing the blood of Christ. I placed a smallbrserpent on the mask on the lowest part of the face of the mask, representing Satanbrleaving. I created a unique eye for the mask, representing the power ofbrChrist to see everything, and finished it with an angel necklace. So thebrinspiration for each may come from a thought, a conviction, suggestion from abrfriend, or the like.
SS: How do you decide on a name for each mask?
Conner: The name forbreach mask is acquired from the impression that I get after the mask is completed. AsbrI look at it, a thought will come to mind of what the mask reminds me of or thebrsense I get from it.
SS: How many masks have you created since you firstbrbegan in 2012?
Conner: I have completedbrover 50 masks since the first one. Some of the masks I create I willbrcombine into one work of art. One that I completed actually has fourbrpelvic bones in it. A larger one in the middle that represents the “mother,”brtwo smaller ones on the side and then another one mounted on a stiff wire abovebrher, representing another child that she is dreaming of for the future.
I make other “faces”brfrom other parts of the deer, using antlers, shoulder blade bones, spinal bonesbrand even turtle shells, that I find on the ranch.
SS: Your book, MysticbrMasks, mentions that you’ve always been drawn to the “brave, fightingbrspirit of the Native American Indian.” Tell us about this.
Conner: The brave,brfighting spirit of the Native American Indian has always been an inspiration tobrme. They seem to have been able to do more with less. They determined when thebrAmerican West opened up. For instance, Comanche boys became adept barebackbrriders by age six. Full Indian braves were considered the best horsemenbrwho ever rode. They were masterful at war that they stopped the northernbrdrive of colonial Spain from Mexico and halted the French expansion westwardbrfrom Louisiana. I admire them for their tenacity, endurance, creativitybrand dedication tobrfamily.
SS: The Shatzie Exotic Game Ranch is where you createbryour masks. How often do you and your wife, Marti, spend time there?
Conner: Marti and Ibrattempt to spend at least a week per month at Shatzie Ranch. Since we putbrin a swimming pool at the ranch, it has really created an additional fourbrmonths during the year that we can enjoy the ranch life.
SS: You’ve donated your masks to various charitybrauctions. What kind of funds have your masks raised?
Conner: I am not sure ofbrthe total dollars that the masks have raised for children’s charities, howeverbrI know the last one I donated sold for $1,900. I am told that twobrdifferent ladies thought they had the winning bid, so one of the ladies paid anbradditional $1,900 to the charity if I would make another one for her. AndbrIbrdid.
SS: Would you like to sell your masks one day?
Conner: I am in abrtransition period regarding the masks. My friends have encouraged me tobrbegin to market them for sale, but I am not sure how to go about it. Ibrwould like for more folks to enjoy them and am probably going to go forwardbrwith some sort of marketing plan.
SS: Where do you display your masks once you havebrcreated them?
Conner: My masks are onbrdisplay in our home in Southlake and on the walls of bedrooms of our main two-storybrhouse at Shatzie Ranch. My shop at the barn, where I create the masks, has morebrinventory of beaded and other types of costume jewelry than most localbrstores. I order all my beaded earrings and necklaces for the masks from NativebrAmerican Indian websites. They are more colorful and detailed than one can findbrin most stores.
SS: Anything else you’d like to say?
Conner: I have searchedbrthe web several times and cannot find another person in the world, at least onbrthe web, who is doing the type of art that I am with the deer pelvic bones.
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