Thanks for joining me in my journey as a sculptor. I figure the best way to get to know each other is to tell my story. My journey with sculpture began in 1991. I was introduced to Dr. Tom Clark, known best for his collectible gnome figurines. It was the first time I had seen a sculptor in action. I was completely intrigued because he was using toothpicks and dental tools to do his magic in modeling clay. I was a wood worker and in that world, if you cut an $20 piece of walnut wrong, you have a $20 scrap. Now, here was this man working in clay that never hardens which allowed him the ability to refine his work until he was satisfied with it.
It was a true epiphany for me. Although artists run through my family, I had always avoided art. Sadly, I couldn't draw a straight line with a ruler! My brain always wanted to pull the image off the page, to make it three dimensional and I couldn't grasp how to make something look 3D on a flat surface. Now, I was seeing art being created in three dimensions and was absolutely hooked. It was clear to me that I had to explore this incredible world. The next day I went to Michael's Crafts, bought some modeling clay and what I think were actually potter's tools, lol. I managed to get some old dental tools from a guitar maker and I started playing around. I didn't really know what to sculpt, but with no idea what I was doing, I dove in. I was an avid martial arts enthusiast at the time, so I decided to sculpt a man wearing a Karate gi (uniform), sitting in a half-lotus position.
It originally had a head, a bald head, because I had no idea how to even think about hair. The head is gone now because this was also the first sculpture I attempted to make a mold of and the head didn't survive that failed process. It wasn't great sclpture, obviously, but for a blind first attempt I was pretty darn pleased. Now I was inspired to seek out ways to really learn this art. Lucky for me, I grew up with a guy who was now an accomplished sculptor in New York City. I contacted him and without hesitation, he pointed me to one of his mentors, the famed Italian-American sculptor Bruno Lucchesi. Bruno is a true master. He is known as the last of the Renaissance sculptors and I encourage you to search him online to see his incredible works. He is 93 and still has an active studio in Greenwich Village. In the 1990's, Bruno was also one of the most prolific teachers of sculpture, publishing a series of sculpture technique books and VHS videos (it was the 90's after all), some of which you can still find clips from on Youtube.
After absorbing as much as I could from Bruno's materials, I discovered the Loveland Academy of Fine Arts, started by Marcie Erion, in Loveland, Colorado, which if you didn't know is the center of the Western Bronze sculptural world. Every year a sculpture show is held in Loveland in the Benson Sculpture Gardens, and it is arguably one of the most important shows in the sculpture world with art from 200 of the worlds best sculptors. People come from around the world every August to Loveland to experience and purchase the best sculptural art available. I was fortunate to be invited to show my work in 2005 and 2006, and look forward to returning now that I am back to creating the art that I love. At the Loveland Academy, I was fortunate to learn from such great artists as Blair Buswell, Lincoln Fox, Fritz White and Star Liana York. I have also been fortunate to study under master sculptor and board member of the National Sculpture Society, Tuck Langland, at the Carrol Campbell, Jr Center for American Sculpture at Brookgreen Gardens in Murrell's Inlet, SC. If you are not familiar with Brookgreen Gardens, you MUST check it out. It is the center of the sculpture world in the USA and has an incredible history as well as some of the most beautiful gardens in the USA. It is over 900 acres of gardens and sculpture from the last 100 years. I also encourage you to search all of the incredible artists mentioned above. They are all true masters of sculpting the human figure and shaped the artist that I am today. Join me for the ride, won't you?