Artist Christopher Tully

by Mike Barker

Above: A colorful clay relief kitty by Christopher Tully.

Artist Christopher Tully does two unusual things with epoxy in his work. He creates large clay relief scenes with lots of detail made up of many tiles. After they are bisque fired he brushes on epoxy and heats them with a torch so the epoxy penetrates deeply into the porous clay. This creates an extremely strong surface that still has great detail. He then applies a primer and paints it with acrylics and a clear coat. Another method he uses is to first apply fiberglass cloth to a carved panel then add details like plants or animals to the surface with a mixture of epoxy and powdered clay. He says he doesn’t need to worry about shrinkage and the details are very strong so he just primes and paints it like any other piece.

Tully became a full-time sculptor after studying ceramics at the University of Minnesota, Duluth. His work can be found in galleries across the country. Today he works on larger more public pieces, which can be found in nature centers, hospitals,and public libraries. To see more of Tully’s artwork, visit www.christophertully.com.

—Mike Barker