Sculptor Daniel Glanz starts with keen observation to create his bronze portraits
By Gussie Fauntleroy
Photos by Jafe Parsons
As a Kenyan sunset bathed the savannah in golden-pink light, photographers and painters on an artists’ safari were quickly framing their perfect images—gorgeous colors, compelling composition, African wildlife at home in its environment. Everything was ideal for capturing an indelible wildlife moment in photographs or sketches to take back to the studio to paint.
Then there was Daniel Glanz. Working at his own pace, unconcerned about the sunset’s ephemeral beauty, the Colorado-based bronze sculptor was busy photographing the back of an elephant’s ear. While his companions quickly reframed and shot new angles of the breathtaking scene, Glanz methodically moved on to aim his lens at the folds on the back of the elephant’s legs. As it slowly began walking, he photographed the bottom of its foot.
A sculptor tends to look at things from top to bottom and all the way around,” he says in his amiable, understated manner. “Observing from life is so important. It adds real perspective. It gives you the ability to determine whether something looks right. It needs to balance; it needs to flow; it needs to be anatomically accurate. – Dan Glanz
Glanz lacks no sensibility for the visually stunning scenes he witnessed in Kenya or on numerous other wildlife excursions he’s taken over the years. He’s intensely aware of the magnificence of both animals and landscape in locations such as the Antarctic, Galapagos Islands, Hawaii, and Central and South America. And he brings back thousands of photos from each trip. But for Glanz, the subjects of his artistic pursuits require much more than a two-dimensional view. “A sculptor tends to look at things from top to bottom and all the way around,” he says in his amiable, understated manner. “Observing from life is so important. It adds real perspective. It gives you the ability to determine whether something looks right. It needs to balance; it needs to flow; it needs to be anatomically accurate.” So really seeing the back of an elephant’s leg pays off. Read more
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