Gary Prazen

A Brief Biography

Gary Prazen was born and raised in Carbon County, UT. His father, Frank Prazen, owned and operated a welding machine business in Price, UT. It was at that shop where Gary was taught how to weld at around the age of 6. He would weld scraps of metal together, making bigger junk. He loved it, and no other toy could be more fun than a welding machine.

In the years that followed, Gary’s father taught him the arts of welding, brazing, blacksmithing, fabricating, machining, and some skills that have never been taught in the educational system. To Gary, his father was a genius, but this was to be discovered later in life because at the age of 17, Gary left home for California. In doing so, Gary cut the 11th grade and never graduated high school. This is a decision that he still regrets to this day.

Later, when Gary came home, he went back to work for his father. It was during that period of time that Gary met Janet Casey, and soon after, they were married. After they wed, they moved to Los Angeles, where they were both hired at Douglas Aircraft. Nine months later, their son Dan was born. This made Gary the sole provider.

Since Gary had experience in welding and proved to have the skills needed in Douglas’s new missile program, Gary was assigned to work with the scientists and metallurgists who were developing that industry. The knowledge Gary received from that experience of working with exotic metals prepared him even more for the future, which he had no idea lay before him.

Gary and his now family of four decided to come back home so he could help his father in the family business. They sold their home in Torrance, CA, and Janet, Dan, and their new baby girl, Mila Le, took the train home. Meanwhile, Gary loaded a Mayflower van and left California. He went right to work for his dad, where after work and on weekends, Gary would create metal artwork to supplement his income. He had to do this and be frugal because he was working for his father during tough times. Soon Gary was making more money “on the side” with his artwork than he was making at his job.

Gary woke up his wife Janet one night and told her he had a design in his head about the house he wanted to build. The house was a round octagon with a steel structure and a floating foundation. Gary could not find anyone who would build the very unusual concrete foundation that would support a house that floated on eight corners and was anchored in the center. Since the house would be heated through the main frame that was made from rectangular, square tubing, the house would expand on fabric pads under each corner of the foundation. He ended up building the foundation himself. It took Gary, Janet, Dan, and some of Gary’s buddies around a year to finish building the house. Since that time, other buildings were added as the business grew. This is where Janet and Gary still reside and work today.

In 1978, John Wayne came to town to endorse a product used in the local coal mines. Everyone in town was excited by the presence of this superstar. Gary was attending a water meeting at his local Country Club one night because he was the County Commissioner. When the meeting was over, he went and sat with some of his friends. One of whom had been escorting John Wayne around the local mines. George Harmond and Chuck Compagni knew John Wayne, and one of them said, “Hey, Prazen, why don’t you do a bronze sculpture of John Wayne?” Gary calls this a Jack Daniels inspiration because the scene out of the movie True Grit flashed in his mind, the scene where John put the reins in his teeth and with a rifle in one hand and a pistol in the other said, “Fill your hands you SOB.” Without even thinking that he had never done a bronze before, he said, “I will.” It was a challenge he had to do, and he would figure the rest out later. One year later, his first bronze sculpture was flown to Newport, CA. It was placed in John Wayne’s house so he could see it when he arrived home from the hospital; his cancer was getting worse. They told Gary that John sat there for quite some time and was very pleased. It was the last bronze John had received, and it hit the API Wire, photo, and story. The response was enormous for Gary, as representatives were calling to represent him in their galleries. If it wasn’t for John Wayne, Gary doubts that he would be where he is now. It changed his direction in life.

At the time this happened, Gary was managing Pioneer Welding and Machine Co. He was County Commissioner and still worked on building his house and his shop. He was also teaching welding at the local college and working on his artwork. He continued to be active in the Jaycee and Elks clubs, and he was basically going crazy trying to cover all the bases. He resigned his one year left as commissioner, and he finished his commitment to the college. He quit Pioneer Welding and went into full-time designing and building his bronze foundry and equipment. He was also doing his artwork on the side. He incorporated his new business under the name of Original Creations, Inc.

The popular subject for bronze sculpture in the art galleries was Cowboys and Indians, wildlife, modern abstract, and almost every other subject, but not the subject of mining. The John Wayne sculpture was a success and was considered Western, so why not continue with this subject matter? Gary had other ideas and made a decision that his friends warned him against, and that the decision was to take on the subject of mining. No artist had done this subject to any degree that would compliment this industry. No artist had seemed to realize what an important role mining played in our history. He thought it was an insult to the profession. His favorite comment, when asked why he insisted on doing mining, was an almost angry response of “The Cowboys and Indians did not do it all!” Even if he failed at this, he would still be alright, so he sculpted several pieces and decided he would have to create his own marketing system because galleries were not too receptive to the mining scene. Someone suggested he rent a small booth at the upcoming MineEXPO at the convention center in Las Vegas. It was sponsored by the American Mining Congress in Washington, DC. He did, and that expo generated over $80,000 in orders and commissions for Original Creations. The American Mining Congress also took Gary under their wing and commissioned him to do work for them. They even invited him back to their expo with a much bigger booth. He has been with them ever since. It, along with the company’s clientele and its website, is its primary source of marketing.

Over the years, Gary’s sculptures have become so popular that they can be found all around the globe in; museums, corporate offices, city parks, homes, lodges, private collections, and even the Disneyland Hotel. Gary has been prolific as a sculptor, which is important to those who invest in his work. Growing older is only an inconvenience but not enough reason to let him retire completely. However, he thought it was wise to turn the everyday business over to his granddaughter Patricia and her husband Danny Blanton, who have both worked for the business for some time and have shown an interest in the business. Danny is now the president and a very skilled artist. This allows Gary the freedom to do his own thing and create new projects.