Bronzes | a-story-place

Many of the life-size sculptures in A Story Place have been cast in bronze. Here, the Girl reading to the forest animals is 45 inches tall.

All the bronzes are created by first having a 3-D digital scan of the ceramic original. Then comes 3-D printing in lost wax to create mold. This allows me to alter the size of a piece. Next the bronze is foundry-cast with hard sand-etched book-work. I use chemical patina colors and finish with a hard wax overcoat.

Bronze Pig won the 2018 Olympia Plinth contest and was in front of Olympia's City Hall for a year. Having won, Olympia purchased Pig to be placed somewhere in the city.

Bear and Rabbit were also watching over Olympia's waterfront boardwalk. Find the entire ceramic and bronze installations on display at the Capital Mall in Olympia, WA.

Pig spent an entire year on Olympia's Boardwalk. Children loved hugging him and rubbing his nose. Now, on to a new adventure somewhere in Olympia!

Bear became popular with boardwalk pedestrians. Here, someone left him a flower! Visitors would lovingly rub his nose--it's quite shiny!

Rabbit and bear enjoying the view--and popularity--they found on Olympia's boardwalk. They were there until June, 2020.

Both Pig and Girl won the Plinth contests in their respective years. After a win, the pig was displayed in front of city hall for a year. The city bought both pieces and an "anonymous benefactor" paid to have many more of the pieces scanned, 3-D printed, and cast in bronze. The ten piece ensemble was donated to the city and are now permanently installed at LBA park in Olympia where they are enjoyed by all who see them.

A Song for Nurturing Peace

I created A Song for Nurturing Peace in 2017. It depicts my strong desire for a peaceful world and one in which we finally become wise caretakers of our planet.

Hand coiled and sculpted clay, fired, woven leather nest, acrylic paint

25"H X 19"W X 21"D

To take A Song for Nurturing Peace, from ceramic to bronze the piece was 3-D scanned and printed in multiple sections of lost wax collectively making the piece eight inches taller. Then molds made of each piece and the lost wax was melted away. This space was filled with liquid bronze and the pieces were welded together. The weld seams were polished smooth, patina applied and polished, and the bird and eggs were painted in enamel.

A Song for Nurturing Peace in bronze was entered in Olympia's 2023 Percival Plinth Project

Size: 33"H X 24"D X 26"W

Thorne-Chambers Studio

C E R A M I C & B R O N ZE SCULPTURES & ILLUSTRATIONS

A Song for Nurturing Peace