Meet Bronwen Weber | Cake Artist Turned Clay Sculptor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bronwen Weber and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bronwen, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
A decade ago, Sharon told me ‘my definition of success is being able to work in my pajamas’. She said this to me as we were whisked from the airport to a baking conference in Dusseldorf. We were both paid speakers and were there for the weekend. Sharon is a highly skilled and very notable cake maker from Sydney. I thought she was extremely talented but young, naive and possibly insane. Clearly, she didn’t have the slightest idea what success was. I considered myself very successful because I was constantly working. Hard work all the time means all the fruits of that work can be classified as success. My coins are adding up? Definitely a sign of success. My back hurts? Well, that’s because I am good at what I do and work all the time to prove it. I don’t get to see my friends often and time goes by so quickly that decades pass like moments? Obviously a sign of an abundance of success. Only unsuccessful people have free time. Right?

A few months of reflection later, I asked myself if perhaps I was the one who had the definition wrong. For Sharon, the most important thing was to work for herself and not have a schedule. Was there anything really wrong with that? She had hobbies, an exciting travel schedule, and a busy social life. Work is not a hobby, and neither is collecting unfulfilled interests.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I make animal sculptures out of clay which are fired with glazes and then painted and waxed. My sculpting ability was honed over my years of making cakes. Only the medium is new – modelling chocolate has been replaced by clay. Even many of the tools I use are the same. I worked so much in my past, that ceramics was my first real hobby since my twenties. I threw everything into it, and I feel extremely passionate about it.

I want each one of my animals to tell a story in its expression and pose. I like to give them personalities and I love celebrating the forgotten, the vermin and the creepy. I just completed my first bronze sculpture of the Velveteen Rabbit. There will only be a limited number of these made. I worked with Hefestus Fine Arts in Azle, one of the region’s only foundries. I got to visit them when they did the final finish and it was truly inspiring and one of my favorite days ever.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
My favorite spot and where I honed some of my ceramics skills is the Dallas Makerspace. This incredible community of creatives, scientists, engineers and builders comes together to teach and create in the 30,000 plus square foot space in Carrollton. I tell everyone about it – even people in line behind me at the grocery store.

Now where will you find me eating? Asian Mint (green papaya salad with a side of peanut sauce), Bushi Bushi (anything served by those robots), Jose (don’t miss the atrium and try all the tequila drinks).

In October, I would take them to the Cottonwood Arts Festival in Richardson which will be my second show of the year.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I have to shoutout to my old career first. I built my long career in cake and sugar art learning from the greats. Kerry Vincent and Arturo Diaz were two of my greatest mentors. They showed me that each cake mattered – both the ones in the competitions and the eight inch rounds for a birthday party. The skills that I learned making and sculpting cakes in these past three plus decades translate very well into clay. Most people do this the other way around and start with mud cakes.

My husband has supported my transition from doing cakes full time to doing ceramic sculptures nearly full time. He believes in me and is as enthusiastic as I am in my new endeavor. He helped build the website and setup our social media. He also took all my photos, helped apply for and worked with me at our first show at the Fort Worth Main Street Arts Festival. He also helps run the kiln which is all the science stuff that he loves. What a guy to support moving from a 35-year successful baking career to playing with dirt.

Website: https://bronwenweber.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bronwenweberclay/?hl=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Bronwen-Weber-Clay/61550247567412/

Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@bronwen.weber

Image Credits
All images by Brad Bush / Bronwen Weber