Tim Bruckner’s earliest memory of sculpting was when he was seven. He sculpted little heads of the Seven Dwarves out of wax tubes a disgustingly sweet liquid candy was packaged in. From the very beginning, he was a wax sculptor. He uses a different kind of wax now and stays away from sweets, for the most part. He started working professionally at 18 as a jeweler’s apprentice/wax carver. He sculpted several hundred wildlife waxes that became rings, pendants, broaches and belt buckles. It was ... view more »
Tim Bruckner’s earliest memory of sculpting was when he was seven. He sculpted little heads of the Seven Dwarves out of wax tubes a disgustingly sweet liquid candy was packaged in. From the very beginning, he was a wax sculptor. He uses a different kind of wax now and stays away from sweets, for the most part. He started working professionally at 18 as a jeweler’s apprentice/wax carver. He sculpted several hundred wildlife waxes that became rings, pendants, broaches and belt buckles. It was the single most valuable experience of his professional life. In those two years he learned the foundation of his art that would sustain him for over forty years.
After leaving the jewelry racket, he found a very patient and sympathetic agent and started working as a freelancer. His first free lance job was for Max Factor, sculpting a menagerie of fanciful animals and decorative objects. From there he sculpted two alligator suits for the movies Joe Panther and Alligator. He did a handful of album covers for various artists; Ray Charles, Ringo Starr, The Average White Band, George Clinton and Parliament and a dust jacket for Cat Stevens. He stepped away from sculpting for a while to pursue a music career. When common sense returned in the form, shape and substance of his amazing wife, Mary, he went back to sculpture with a vengeance.
A partial client list (partial because he can’t remember all the crap he made and for whom he made it.) includes: DC Direct, Mattel, Kenner, Hasbro, Toy Biz, Bowen Designs, Sideshow, Gentle Giant, Electric Tiki, Reel Arts, Enesco, Dakin, The Hamilton Group, Hallmark, Applause, American Greetings, Department 56, Ashton Drake, Franklin Mint, Geometric, Graham Nash, Harry Nilsson and the Danbury Mint. He was under contract to DC Direct for a while and worked almost exclusively for them for almost a dozen years. One of his most gratifying professional experiences was designing and sculpting the DC Dynamics line based on the art of J. C. Leyendecker.
In 2010, he co-authored Pop Sculpture, how to create collectible statues and action figures published by Watson/Guptill. His Ode to Joy, a bust of Beethoven caught mid- chuckle, is among the featured images of the great man in a book published last year by Bildersammlung Museum Beethoven-Haus, Bonn, Germany.
Now retired from commercial work, he focuses on commission and personal work. Big howdy to Errol and Anne. Two of the most amazing people he’s ever met.
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