Harold Fooshee Clayton (May 9, 1954 – May 26, 2015) was a noted

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

and stone-carver, best known for several sets of life-size sculptures of cows on display at various public sites in Texas. Initially interested in painting, Clayton studied art at the

Massachusetts College of Art Massachusetts College of Art and Design, branded as MassArt, is a public college of visual and applied art in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1873, it is one of the nation's oldest art schools, and the only publicly funded independent art sch ...

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

and the

University of North Texas The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public university, public research university located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its main campus is in Denton, Texas, Denton, with a satellite campus in Frisco, Texas, Frisco. It serves as the ...

Denton, Texas Denton is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Denton County, Texas, Denton County. With a population of 139,869 as of 2020, it is the List of cities in Texas by population, 20th-most populous city in Texas, the List of Un ...

, graduating ''

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

'' with a BFA in 1977. He moved to stone as a medium, and spent the years from 1982 to 1987 in

Pietrasanta, Italy Pietrasanta is a town and ''comune'' on the coast of northern Tuscany in Italy, in the province of Lucca. Pietrasanta is part of Versilia, on the last foothills of the Apuan Alps, about north of Pisa. The town is located off the coast, where the ...

, studying

carving Carving is the act of using tools to shape something from a material by scraping away portions of that material. The technique can be applied to any material that is solid enough to hold a form even when pieces have been removed from it, and y ...

in the studio of

Sem Ghelardini Sem Ghelardini (30 March 1927 – 12 January 1997) was an Italian sculptor and artisan. He was known as a master marble-carver and was the founder of Studio Sem in Pietrasanta, which has executed the monumental works of many contemporary sculpt ...

. While still in Italy, Clayton accepted a commission for four sets of five

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

cows from for the

Trammell Crow Fred Trammell Crow (June 10, 1914 – January 14, 2009) was an American real estate developer from Dallas, Texas. He is credited with the creation of several major real estate projects, including the Dallas Market Center, Peachtree Center in Atlan ...

Company, a large

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

real estate development concern. Three of the sets now stand in Texas at the Arboretum at Great Hills in

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

, at Founder's Park in

Las Colinas Las Colinas is a mixed-use planned community development in Irving, Texas governed by The Las Colinas Association, a Texas nonprofit corporation. Due to its central location in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex and proximity to Dallas/Fort Wor ...

in Irving, and at Trammel Crow Park in Dallas. The fourth set is at One Park Plaza in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

. A sculpture of a half completed cow, emerging from stone, sits in the front yard of Clayton's former home in Dallas. The cows at these sites stand where live cows actually grazed in the recent past. In fact, the models for the sculptures were made in 1980 from cows standing on the hill where the Las Colinas cows now appear to graze. Each cow required four tons of marble. The cows at the Arboretum site are much loved by children. Clayton maintained a workshop in Dallas and was a member of th
Stone Carvers Guild
He died of lung cancer in 2015.Dallas artist Harold Fooshee Clayton dies at 61
''The Dallas Morning News'', 28 May 2015. Retrieved 2015-05-29.

References

Images

Bison in Heath, Texas

One of the Las Colinas cows

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clayton, Harold F. 20th-century American sculptors 1954 births Massachusetts College of Art and Design alumni Stone carvers University of North Texas alumni 2015 deaths 21st-century American sculptors

See also

References

Images