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Detail of String Quartet

This website is an introduction to the bronze sculptures of J. Clayton Bright.      J. Clayton Bright combines his keen power of observation with his highly skilled craftsmanship to create bronzes which radiate with life.  Each of his sculptures truly reflects his model's individual nature and personality.   His understanding of the subject's physical and spiritual attributes allows Bright to achieve realistic sculpture with a sophisticated emotional clarity.

Preacher

The subject matter of these bronzes ranges from people, young and old, navy and white, male and female, to a wide variety of animals, both wild and domesticated.  Bright works only from life, so he can gather his understanding of the model's personality.  This insistence on creating from life necessitates his working where the model is, be that a barn, a field, or a house.

Pont Alexandre III

His quest for knowledge led Bright to attend his wife's anatomy classes when she was attending veterinary school.   At other times he has waited for the return of spring in order to see a certain type of behavior in an animal.  Once he lay on the ground at the base of a three and a half foot fence while a friend jumped a horse over him, the purpose being to gain an understanding of the horse's stomach muscles when it jumped.

Equestrienne

Even when doing a seemingly generic subject: a hound running, a kestrel or a child on her pony, Bright choses a particular model who reflects his vision.   He then captures in clay the natural pose, attitude, and expression.  It is as if he has taken a snapshot which gathers in everything that is significant in the subject.  This is where his control of his craftsmanship enables this vision to become reality.   The resulting bronzes radiate tremendous energy, and brings to the observer a sense of warm recognition of the subject matter.

A Couple of Hounds

These sculptures vary in size ranging from some box turtle shells four and a half inches long to a life size Jersey cow measuring seven feet in length.   Bright sculpts unique commissions for clients, as well as offering limited editions of sculptures created from his own inspiration, often evoked by chance observation of a movement or gesture.

Fifteen

Bright's unique talents have resulted in the placement of his bronzes in numerous private and corporate collections in the United States, Europe, South America, and Japan.   His work is also represented in the collections of several museums.   A 50-page catalogue of life size and table size bronzes is available.  The price and availability of any piece is subject to change; this information is available on request.