James Stockton Sculpture

James Stockton's work manages to capture the beauty, nuance, elegance and power of the animal form, and do it in a way that is very much his own. What we find so impressive in James's work is the way in which it manages to freeze the shape of the subject, so that we get a chance to focus on the animal's form in minute detail. This frozen form nevertheless expresses so much dynamism. This is a case where, as it is so often in great sculptures, the static nature of the piece of art paradoxically expresses to the viewer great oceans of movement.

Animal based Sculpture

James Stockton, above all, is able to portray the great power and strength of animals with stunning accuracy. In some regards, he has the same skill as a portrait painter. He very much engages with character, just as much as a skilled portraitist would do. You get a real sense of the personality of the creature in question when you look at one of his fantastic sculptures. It is for this reason that his work has been a favourite of those of us who are interested in wildlife of all kinds. Just in the same way that great wildlife photography gives you a sense of how lucky we are to share this planet with so many wonderful creatures, so too does James Stockton's work give you a feeling of wonder and awe for the animal kingdom. We are really pleased to be able to have prime examples of James's limited-edition sculpted artwork in our collection.

Traditional, limited-edition sculptures

James is well known for the way that he uses foundry bronze in his sculptures. Foundry bronze metal is a copper and tin alloy which is used in a traditional style of bronze casting known as the lost wax process. This method of bronze casting goes right the way back to Ancient Greece. In this method, the metal is melted at extremely high temperatures and then it is poured into a ceramic mould. This mould, along with the wax model, is then lost as the sculpture takes shape, hence the name of the technique. The lost wax method is extremely painstaking and takes much longer than the cold cast method. With these foundry bronze sculptures, you will be able to tell the difference primarily in sound and colour. If you tap one of these sculptures with your nail, you will hear a metallic ring, rather than the flatter sound of bronze resin. Then, looking at its colour, you will be able to see a deeper colour and a greater lustre, and this lustre is particularly pronounced in any gold-coloured highlights. For more information you can read our article on the lost-wax casting process.