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Preserving the innocence and adventure of childhood is the theme of Walt Horton's sculptures. Each piece captures in bronze a moment of discovery or the tackling of a new challenge. Horton calls on his background as a cartoonist to instill a touch of humor and a feeling of recognition in each of these accomplishments.
Horton believes that each of his sculptures brings back a feeling of nostalgia for the innocence of childhood. Each of his subjects is caught in an action that the viewers can recall from either their own memory or from watching children they have known discover the world around them.
In addition to his bronzes of children, Horton also enjoys creating sculptures that depict humorous situations. He says he enjoys looking at the amusing side of life and making people laugh. Horton draws his humor from his fascination with people and their eccentricities, an ability he perfected during more than 10 years as a professional cartoonist.
A self-taught artist, Horton began his career in cartooning while living in Bermuda. He specialized in sports and historical cartoons and even did a cartoon strip. His works have appeared in various publications in more than 200 countries and 89 languages. He also ran an advertising agency that specialized in humorous ads.
Although he enjoyed his two-dimensional art work, Horton says outstanding sculpture has always mesmerized him. Finally, he decided to indulge his lifelong fascination with three-dimensional art. Since he lives in a Colorado region known for its sculptors, he was able to take classes from several great American artists whose works he admires.
Although sculpting was a dream for many years, Horton never thought he would have the opportunity to pursue it professionally. However, he found he had two advantages that made his work immediately acceptable--the transition from two- dimensional to three-dimensional works came naturally and he had a wealth of ideas he wanted to translate into bronze.
Gallerie Amsterdam is proud to feature his work in Carmel.
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