(Algirdas Mazgelis)

Masterful Maker of a Magical Menagerie

by Pam North

The spectrum of this soft-sculpture wizard’s artful and whimsical creations seems endless, each one an utter quirky delight in itself, and it encompasses all manner of monsters, birds, dragons, and animals (both wild and domestic). The fantasy caricatures are colorful, droll, friendly, and great fun, and there seems to be no limit to their creator’s astounding and ingenious imagination. The only definite problem for a collector is not being able to have all of them – choosing is an absolute dilemma.
Algirdas Mazgelis is a multi-dimensional man who was born and raised in Russian-occupied Lithuania, and who now lives in Torrox Costa, Spain with his family. With a degree in Applied Arts (artistic glass), he worked in various fields of art and advertising for a many years, sculpting and creating with a variety of different materials (glass, stone, clay, wood, and more), and also worked as an advertising designer for 15 years. His hobbies and interests have been multiple, including bonsai growing, breeding Alaskan Malamute dogs, mountaineering, water tourism, making several old-style rustic ovens, and working as a restorer and a gardener. He has learned a lot in his life, enabling him to build two houses for his family.
He has been happily married for 35 years. “My wonderful wife economist is a master of many crafts, from whom I learned much. My daughter makes awesome needle-felted toys in her spare time, and my son loves wood carving and sculpturing.” For a long time, he and his family made toys and other crafts together and sold them, but as time went by, things changed. His wife had two eye surgeries that affected her ability to participate other than sharing ideas and advising, and his children grew up and had other jobs and hobbies, so Mazgelis crafts his creatures primarily alone now. “I am very grateful to my wife, who had so much patience to teach me many crafts, and who still gives me many ideas.”
He regards himself as having been an artist, a sculptor, and a craftsman all his life. He participated in a show for the first time with his needle-felted soft sculptures 25 years ago, but it wasn’t until 2015 that he started seriously making bears under his brand name of Algis Bear. “In the creation of these collection toys my wife, Jone, a specialist in a variety of handicrafts, helps me a lot,” he explained. “That's why the toys are made using diverse fabrics and techniques. I make all kinds of creatures, teddy bears, and their friends with different characters and moods. All of my creations are unique.” All are made using his own original designs.
Quality is important to Mazgelis. His  toys are created using diverse, high-quality fabrics (mohair, alpaca, faux fur, natural German wool, wool and alpaca threads, pure silk), and various techniques (hand sewing, needle-felting, sculpturing, knitting, embroidering) to craft them into his diverse menagerie of wonderful creatures. He now uses CosClay (rubber/polymer hybrid clay that is flexible) for sculptured details such as noses, hands, feet, horns, wings, ears, and mouths. All limbs are cotter-pinned to facilitate movement, and wires are strategically placed inside horns, wings and ears so they can be carefully rotated in different positions. Inside the head, body, and tail there is a LockLine skeleton, so the body is fully adjustable. Filling for the body consists of natural German wool and steel granules. He has two methods of construction for faces: the first is sewn and formed, and the second is sculpted with the needle-felting process.
High-quality glass eyes are an important feature in his creations. “I think eyes tell a lot about a person, so when I'm making toys I always pay a lot of attention to eyes of my creatures.” He makes his glass eyes himself, explaining that he needs different sizes, colors, patterns, and thickness of glass for each toy. “The gaze of the creature looks at you as it’s turned,” he explained.

He continues to evolve in his craft. “As I make my creations, I always try to do better than before.” New ideas come readily for him. “I always have more ideas than time to implement them!” he commented. One of his greatest satisfactions in his craft is the reactions of his fans and customers. “I am very happy when people smile while looking at my toys. I enjoy creating my creatures, and I am happy to do what I love. I just want to have more time for that.”
His workshop is on his sunny balcony, shared with his bonsai collection, with stunning views of the Mediterranean Sea. So much of his inspiration comes from his surroundings, and “wonderful nature”, as he describes it.
Mazgelis started participating in exhibitions with glass art in 1986, and in various craft shows and festivals from 2000, but it was in 2006 that his focus for the shows were about his toys (needle-felted and wood carved). The years 2017 through 2022 have encompassed many on-line shows, events in Europe and Australia, and international competitions such as the Toby Awards, and he has received numerous awards for his creations. The COVID-19 pandemic put a definite damper on his attending shows, but his work and orders also have increased to fill his hours to the point that he has no extra time for shows. He sells most of his work on internet shops and Facebook, and he hopes that this will be his source of livelihood. Although his time currently is too limited for conducting workshops to teach others, he is planning to possibly do that in the future.
The future of artist-made collectibles is of concern to most serious artists, and Mazgelis has a positive approach. “I am an optimist, and I hope that collectible toys, teddy bears, soft sculptures have come to be like all art, regarded with a continuing and growing appreciation of artists and their work.”
Mazgelis started three new collections last year (Charming Monsters, Safari, and Embroidery Beauty) on which he is still working, and doubtlessly, with his creative genius, there will be other appealing creations breathed into his captivating world of charismatic creatures.

Contact Information:
Name: Algirdas Mazgelis
Business Name: Algis Bear
Address: Torrox Costa, Spain
Email: algirdasknot@yahoo.com
Websites:
https://algisbear.com/
https://www.bearpile.com/algisbear
https://www.facebook.com/algirdas.mazgelis
https://algisbear.tedsby.com/