Dragon Sculptor Studios by artist Travis Rice
How Dragon Sculptor Studios came about:
So a little relevant information. Travis Rice, that's me there sculpting on a lion in concrete at the annual "Underground" event here in Dallas. I am the owner and operator of Dragon Sculptor Studios and while I am not adverse to working with others, for the most part all the work you will see in there pages are my own.
way back in 1977 I was asked a common question for an adult to ask a four year old child, "What are you going to be when you grow up?"
"An artist." the answer came just as easily to my lips as if they had asked me what my name was. Since then very little has changed. for a while I thought that an artist had to be a painter so I worked at and studied painting and drawing, knew my perspective by 5 and had my first set of oils at 8. My talent grew as I grew till one day in my teens I noticed something and it changed my focus forever.
I was really good at sculpture. I could sculpt something in clay in a fourth the time it would take me to draw, and it would look better too. after all those years of working at getting better at drawing and painting and the first time I try sculpting I'm better at it than I was at the others. Well and good to work to become really good at something, but how much better to work at something your good at to become great at something. I didn't stop my education in 2d work but my focus became sculpture.
It's not surprising that being a teenager I would turn my hand to dragons. What surprised my instructors was the level of detail and life I could bring to them. For me they had to work, not just visually, but underneath. I would visualize the bone structure and where the muscles would lay. See how it would move in order to both walk and fly without bone and sinew getting in the way as most dragon sculptures I would see in stores would be.
Dragons weren't all I ever sculpted, in fact I found I was quite good at anything I tried sculpting. From human figure to abstract form, from flowers to grotesque monsters, I could do it all. Now decades later I have only gotten better and yes, I do still sculpt Dragons. It's not easy to quit on your first love. Now I'd say one in ten sculpts I do are dragons but as a nod to my first love, this is Dragon Sculptor Studios.
Please enjoy viewing my work, and if you are at all interested in purchasing something you see or are at all interested in commissioning me for something personal or just want to ask me something, just use the contact form at the bottom of each page
way back in 1977 I was asked a common question for an adult to ask a four year old child, "What are you going to be when you grow up?"
"An artist." the answer came just as easily to my lips as if they had asked me what my name was. Since then very little has changed. for a while I thought that an artist had to be a painter so I worked at and studied painting and drawing, knew my perspective by 5 and had my first set of oils at 8. My talent grew as I grew till one day in my teens I noticed something and it changed my focus forever.
I was really good at sculpture. I could sculpt something in clay in a fourth the time it would take me to draw, and it would look better too. after all those years of working at getting better at drawing and painting and the first time I try sculpting I'm better at it than I was at the others. Well and good to work to become really good at something, but how much better to work at something your good at to become great at something. I didn't stop my education in 2d work but my focus became sculpture.
It's not surprising that being a teenager I would turn my hand to dragons. What surprised my instructors was the level of detail and life I could bring to them. For me they had to work, not just visually, but underneath. I would visualize the bone structure and where the muscles would lay. See how it would move in order to both walk and fly without bone and sinew getting in the way as most dragon sculptures I would see in stores would be.
Dragons weren't all I ever sculpted, in fact I found I was quite good at anything I tried sculpting. From human figure to abstract form, from flowers to grotesque monsters, I could do it all. Now decades later I have only gotten better and yes, I do still sculpt Dragons. It's not easy to quit on your first love. Now I'd say one in ten sculpts I do are dragons but as a nod to my first love, this is Dragon Sculptor Studios.
Please enjoy viewing my work, and if you are at all interested in purchasing something you see or are at all interested in commissioning me for something personal or just want to ask me something, just use the contact form at the bottom of each page
Sculpture
In the Sculpture page of the web site you will find many more sculptures, some old some new, some sold and some available for purchase.
I hope you will be able to enjoy viewing them as much as I enjoy creating them.
image to the left:
"Dawn Patrol"
painted epoxy clay on granite
I hope you will be able to enjoy viewing them as much as I enjoy creating them.
image to the left:
"Dawn Patrol"
painted epoxy clay on granite
Paintings
If you are interested in a painting instead of a sculpture, I have those too.
Abstract or fantasy, playful or series, whatever your taste. If I don't have it and you want it, I can probably paint it for you.... Enjoy
image to left:
"Midair Encounter"
oil on canvas
Abstract or fantasy, playful or series, whatever your taste. If I don't have it and you want it, I can probably paint it for you.... Enjoy
image to left:
"Midair Encounter"
oil on canvas
Murals
Sometimes neither painting nor sculpture is what feels right for a space, but you still want to liven up a room. I can open up a window onto a world you wouldn't see otherwise. Broadening the space or just decorating it, a mural can do things for your space that little else can without remodeling. If you like the idea of sleeping under the open sky but don't want to experience all that weather brings throughout the year. If your office feels to much like an office and you want to bring the space a little peace. A mural can be the answer you are looking for.
Look through the mural page and even the theater design page to see some of what's possible. Every mural is custom to the space and the individual but you just might see something that inspires you.
image to left:
Gothic Arch window with view of a robin on a cherry blossom branch
3 1/2 feet x 4 feet
Look through the mural page and even the theater design page to see some of what's possible. Every mural is custom to the space and the individual but you just might see something that inspires you.
image to left:
Gothic Arch window with view of a robin on a cherry blossom branch
3 1/2 feet x 4 feet
Theater Design/Scene Painting
It wasn't till I moved to Dallas and was hired on to work on the set for musical Macbeth at Dallas Stage and Scenery that it dawned on me that I had the skills to create for theater productions. Since then I have painted sets for fourteen productions. Five of them my own design, and four were professional productions.
image to right:
three panels of the four part set for, "the Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever" as put on
by Trinity Church Dallas's Extraordinary Kids Players
2012
image to right:
three panels of the four part set for, "the Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever" as put on
by Trinity Church Dallas's Extraordinary Kids Players
2012
Home Improvement Services
Now I bet you're wondering... What? he's a handyman too?
Yes I am. Imagine having the creativity of a professional artist along with the dexterity of a sculptor. Handyman work is easy, I'd been doing DIY projects all my life with my family. Worked construction for a time after collage. So now I help people maintain, update, or even remodel there homes to supplement my income.
If you want a practiced hand along with someone who's capable of giving creative solutions, then I'm your guy.
image to left:
formerly a smaller galley kitchen with a country style, this was a full remodel. I was responsible for everything from the design on through to the finish work. (more details on this project in the Home Improvement Services page.)
Yes I am. Imagine having the creativity of a professional artist along with the dexterity of a sculptor. Handyman work is easy, I'd been doing DIY projects all my life with my family. Worked construction for a time after collage. So now I help people maintain, update, or even remodel there homes to supplement my income.
If you want a practiced hand along with someone who's capable of giving creative solutions, then I'm your guy.
image to left:
formerly a smaller galley kitchen with a country style, this was a full remodel. I was responsible for everything from the design on through to the finish work. (more details on this project in the Home Improvement Services page.)