Amy Bright Unfried
2009 Honored Member

It is with great pride that the CLWAC has named Amy Bright Unfried as honored artist for 2009. Her life is one of high achievement, creativity, dedication, and service to the arts, to volunteer organizations, and to the environment. She was elected to membership in the CLWAC in 1993,
served as VP of Sculpture from 1995 to 1998 and was elected to the presidency in 1998 and served until 2000. Under her leadership the Club embraced the new technology of the 21st Century, a web presence was initiated, the connection to Artists’ Equity and other arts organizations was
strengthened, the club’s finances were evaluated and re-invested. In the long tradition of CLWAC presidents, Amy’s talents and strengths were what was needed at that critical time in the club’s history.

Amy was born in Boston, graduated from Wellesley College and earned a Master’s Degree in Economics from Yale. After marrying Steve Unfried and working in the business community for several years she and her family moved to Bronxville, New York. With her children flourishing, Amy turned to sculpture and a whole new vocation. She studied at SUNY-Purchase and then for three years at the National Academy. Her interest was always the human figure.

“Henry at Three Months,”
bronze, 9”h x 6”w x 6”d.

“Quiet,” bronze,
25”h x 5”w x 5”d.

“Young Man Reading,” bronze
commissioned for The Center for the Arts,
Jackson, WY, life size.

She started exhibiting her works in bronze in 1991 and has exhibitied widely ever since. Solo exhibitions have been at the National Arts Club, the Union Theological Seminary, The Pen and Brush, the Larchmont, Chappaqua, Danbury and Concordia College libraries, and the Mamaroneck Artists Guild Gallery. Small group exhibits have been in galleries in Bronxville and White Plains, NY; Litchfield, CT; Jackson, WY; and Milton, MA.

A recent purchase award from the Wyoming Governor’s Capitol Art Exhibition is one of the highlights of more than thirty awards she has received from many venues, among them the prestigious American Artists Professional League, National Association of Women Artists, Allied Artists of America, The Pen and Brush, and CLWAC. She has been a member of all these organizations. A casting of her sculpture “Two Sisters” is included in the Jane Vorhees Zimmerli Art Museum of Rutgers University as part of the National Association of Women Artists Collection. Commissioned work is in many private collections as well as public arenas.

Her sculptures, ranging from small and medium-sized table pieces up to life size, are done in a classical realist style. She seeks to capture in these figures, busts, and bas-reliefs what is timeless and eternal and yet of the current moment. She works mostly from life in clay or wax, models with careful attention to anatomical accuracy imbuing each figure with a life like grace. They are then cast in bronze at a foundry in limited editions.

“Great Horned Owl,” bronze,
14”h x 8”w x 7”d.

“Hawk Totem,” bronze,
15”h x 4.5”diam.

In several of her female pieces, the light green patina of the dress is in contrast to the bronze color of the figure and the darkness of the hair. These figures are modern, but with a classical elegance that is reminiscent of the ancient Greek – the spirit and the body are one. Her children’s figures and heads are solid forms, expressing compressed energy. In “Henry at Three Months,” her grandchild is depicted with a half smile, a gentleness and strength.

In all her work there is a plastic vigor and a sense of an inner life. The overwhelming impression is of refinement, a gentle sweetness, achieved partly by a flowing design, partly by the delicacy of the execution and the sureness of her technique. Since her move to Wyoming, living close to nature has led to a second body of work consisting of small delicate bronze trees, cast directly from interestingly shaped natural branches and inhabited by birds.

Amy’s contributions to the CLWAC continue in her role as a Permanent Advisor. Her editorial and proofreading skills are called upon constantly. Her artistic achievements and national recognition continue to bring luster to the club’s history. The board of directors always looks forward to Amy’s New York visits and is proud to have her as our honored member.

“Dreamer,” bronze, 19”h x 24”w X 18”d.

1979 Sally Swan Carr
1983 Diana Kan
1985 Carey Boone Nelson
1990 Adrienne Potter
1991 Marilyn Newmark
1993 Sybil D'Orsi
1994 Lucille Hampton
1995 Lucille Stillma
1997 Beverly Bender
1998 Mary Lou Ferbert

1999 Dorothy Dallas
2000 Virginia Abbot
2001 Francine “Franke” DeBevoise
2002 Inge Jannen Heus
2003 Jean Kroeber
2004 Eleanor Tyndall Meier
2005 Ruth B. Reiber
2006 Elaine Lavalle
2007 Lucille Berrill Paulsen
2008 Gaile Snow Gibbs
2009 Amy Bright Unfried