The founder of the Marist Brothers has been carved into a bench in an outdoor sacred space, ensuring those who visit are in good company.
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A life-sized statue of the Brothers’ founder St Marcellin Champagnat has been installed at Marist College Bendigo as the group marks 125 years of service as educators in Bendigo.
The unveiling came on the same day the Marist College Bendigo officially opened one of its latest building projects. The $3.5 million extension to the school’s Montagne building will be set aside for students in their middle years of study.
Former Bendigo students, staff and brothers from nearby and interstate gathered at the school for both the building opening and the unveiling of the statue.
The Marist Old Collegians’ Kevin Foley said the statue was recognition of the patience and perseverance of the brothers who had taught in Bendigo for a century and a quarter.
“We commissioned the work with (sculptor) Richard Yates from Chewton, because we heard he was handy with a chainsaw and wood,” he said.
Mr Yates said the material had been supplied by the Mount Alexander Shire after it cut down a 129-year-old cedar in one of its public parks.
Mr Yates worked on the piece every day for a month, pouring over every inch of the detailed statue’s surface. Even the buttons had their own distinct shades of stain.
He said the greatest challenge he had faced was working on a large scale.
“I had to have a bobcat to bring it into my shop to begin with, it was such a big log,” Mr Yates said.
“I had the big chainsaws and grinders, too. When I got him down to this (the statue’s current) size it was a bit more manageable.
“But it was a bit of a struggle until that point.”
Mr Yates had been sculpting full-time for eight years.
“It was a passion I got into in 2005. I thought I’d start it as a hobby and I could not stop. I absolutely loved it,” he said.
The statue will sit on a bench in the college’s sacred space, an outdoor area set aside as a chapel.