About Bronze Casting and The Artist
Quality Bronze Sculpture Since 1970
Our bronze foundry is one of only a few, artist-owned foundries left in America. Started in 1970, Shoop’s American Bronze Casting, Ltd. began by making custom bronze statues for recognition awards. While trophies and award plaques remain a large part of our business, as a full-service foundry we also carry many specialty bronze items like bronze eagles, Remington bronze statues, architectural accents, and custom art casting for artists and the architectural industry. All of our products are handmade in America.
As with most business endeavors, Shoop’s has had its share of challenges from a fire that destroyed the building to rocky economic conditions yet one thing remains constant about our business, our commitment to making high quality bronze art.
Throughout Shoop’s thirty-plus year history Wally has worked diligently developing and growing his corporation. He encourages steady, thoughtful growth, yet insists that production be limited to that level enabling strict quality control. A keen sense of standards and ethical business codes permits the artist to inspect each casting before release to the customer.
Wally Shoop, the Artist
Owner and artist Wally Shoop has created well over a thousand wildlife, memorial, and bronze art sculptures. Shoop’s realistic bronze art is produced with the intent of capturing human feelings within natural forms. His onsite studio is a place where creativity and the human spirit meet.
Inspiration and the Creative Process
Shoop’s inspiration comes from his observations of the natural world, his imaginative search for powerful images, and his American Indian heritage and respect for nature gives his creations almost spiritual qualities of animal life. The realistic bronze sculptures produced in his studio provide ample evidence of his creative force and artistic intent - to capture human feelings within natural forms.
Using the lost wax process of bronze casting, which appeared nearly six thousand years ago, Shoop first sculpts in soft wax; then makes a rubber mold of the wax model. From the rubber mold he creates multiple wax impressions of the original. Each wax impression is encased in a ceramic shell and placed in an oven; with temperatures exceeding fifteen hundred degrees, the wax melts rapidly. The ceramic shell is packed in sand and molten bronze is poured into the shell. When the bronze cools, the ceramic shell is broken. The bronze casting is then finished with meticulous handwork to capture and enhance the detail.
True to form for many artists, you may find 20 to 30 works in process upon entering the studio. It is the creative process at its best.
Handmade in America
All of Shoop’s American Bronze Casting pieces are handmade in America using the lost wax process of bronze casting.