Kent Ullberg, Leopard Lookout, bronze, 20 x 13 x 20.
“Nature is my big inspiration,” says Kent Ullberg of the force that has driven him for almost 50 years to sculpt lifelike wild animals of the land, sea, and air. Along the way, the Swedish-born artist, who moved to the United States in 1974, has gained a dedicated following for both his limited-edition sculptures and his public monuments.
In recent years, Ullberg—who splits his time between Loveland, CO, and South Padre Island, TX—has gained particular satisfaction from creating works everyone can admire. October 2014 saw the arrival of SNOWMASTADON, an accurate recreation of the Ice Age mammal in bronze measuring over 19 feet tall. It’s on permanent display outside the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, the institution that first brought him to America as an exhibits artist and developer. Last September, Omaha’s Lauritzen Gardens welcomed BRUCE, a 10-foot-long bronze tiger. “I love how people can interact with my public sculptures,” Ullberg chuckles.
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- Kent Ullberg, Pronghorn Pyramid, bronze, 15 x 17 x 9.
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- Kent Ullberg, Mountain Majesty, stainless steel, 19 x 12 x 8.
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- Kent Ullberg, Mind and Passion, bronze, 20 x 17 x 16.
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- Kent Ullberg, Merry Time Romance, bronze, 20 x 9 x 5.
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- Kent Ullberg, Bonding, stainless steel, 21 x 14 x 7.
Ullberg has also been deeply moved by recent retrospectives. In 2019, the Art Museum of South Texas in Corpus Christi displayed 64 of his pieces along with sketchbooks, maquettes, and more. Even more meaningful, he admits, was an exhibition in Stockholm in 2018 marking 50 years since his graduation from the Swedish University College of Art. “When I was a student there, my professor told me I would never make a living sculpting animals. Lo and behold, he turned up at the opening, pushing 90 but just as intimidating!”
Ullberg is represented by Broadmoor Galleries, Colorado Springs, CO; Corpus Christi Art Connection, Corpus Christi, TX; Helena Fox Fine Art, Charleston, SC; Guy Harvey Gallery and Shoppe, George Town, Cayman Island; Paderewski Fine Art, Beaver Creek, CO; Pitzer’s Fine Art, Wimberley, TX; Trailside Galleries, Scottsdale, AZ; Wiford Gallery, Santa Fe, NM; and Wind Way Gallery, Rockport, TX. –Norman Kolpas
This story appeared in the May 2021 issue of Southwest Art magazine.