Brian Hanlon is a classically trained master sculptor and founder of Hanlon Sculpture

Studio A studio is an artist or worker's workroom. This can be for the purpose of acting, architecture, painting, pottery (ceramics), sculpture, origami, woodworking, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, industrial design ...

. He has created over 400 public and private art pieces since 1987. Hanlon is a nationally acclaimed artist from

Toms River, New Jersey Toms River is a township in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. Its mainland portion is also a census-designated place of the same name, which serves as the county seat of Ocean County.bronze sculpture Bronze is the most popular metal for Casting (metalworking), cast metal sculptures; a cast bronze sculpture is often called simply "a bronze". It can be used for statues, singly or in groups, reliefs, and small statuettes and figurines, as w ...

relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

trophies A trophy is a tangible, durable reminder of a specific achievement, and serves as a recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are often awarded for sporting events, from youth sports to professional level athletics. In many sports medals (or, in ...

, plaques and awards. He is known for developing a distinguishable style of movement in contemporary American

realism Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to: In the arts *Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts Arts movements related to realism include: *Classical Realism *Literary realism, a move ...

sculpture. In 2015
Hanlon was named
the Official Sculptor of the

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...

, and in 2018 Hanlon was named the Official Sculptor of the

Rose Bowl Stadium The Rose Bowl is an outdoor athletic stadium located in Pasadena, California. Opened in October 1922, the stadium is recognized as a National Historic Landmark and a California Historic Civil Engineering landmark. At a modern capacity of an all-s ...

. Hanlon has received national and local awards and commendations for his commissions, which primarily encompass the civic, historic and athletic sectors. On January 16, 2018, Hanlon was named the "Sports Rodin," a reference to French sculptor

Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a uniqu ...

, in the feature story
Sports Rodin Works in Bronze
by

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

. In 2018, the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (commonly known as SAAM, and formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds o ...

began including Hanlon's monuments in its catalogue of contemporary American sculptors. He has been the subject of several news features, as well as a short documentary about his work that was created by Brad Nau and shown on

Comcast SportsNet NBC Sports Regional Networks is the collective name for a group of regional sports networks in the United States that are primarily owned and operated by the NBCUniversal division of the cable television company Comcast. The networks were origin ...

. 2017 was the "busiest year" in Hanlon's decades-long professional career. Hanlon oversaw the unveiling of 30 new monuments, including

Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on TNT. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "Chuck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley played 16 seasons in the Natio ...

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

Evander Holyfield Evander Holyfield (born October 19, 1962) is an American former professional boxer who competed between 1984 and 2011. He reigned as the undisputed champion at cruiserweight in the late 1980s and at heavyweight in the early 1990s, and is the on ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...

as a football player at the Rose Bowl, and 12

Hoosier Hoosier is the official demonym for the people of the U.S. state of Indiana. The origin of the term remains a matter of debate, but "Hoosier" was in general use by the 1840s, having been popularized by Richmond resident John Finley's 1833 poem "T ...

Icons in the lobby of

Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall ( ), formerly named and still commonly referred to as Assembly Hall, is a 17,222-seat arena on the campus of Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. It is the home of the Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball and women ...

. In July 2021,

Gabe Albornoz The following is a list of members of the Montgomery County Council since its creation. Current members The members of the County Council as of 2022 are: Past members Background colors indicate party: 1949-70: Council–Manager form of gover ...

, Montgomery County Council Vice President, announced that Hanlon would be sculpting a new piece in honor of Olympic gymnastic legend, Dominique Dawes. Hanlon uses water-based

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

rather than oil-based clay because he finds it to be "firmer and less pliable," which enables him to convey movement or action in his sculptures. His commissions typically take six to 36 months to complete, based on size and scope.

Notable sculpture projects

Elizabeth Freeman Elizabeth Freeman ( 1744 December 28, 1829), also known as Bet, Mum Bett, or MumBet, was the first enslaved African American to file and win a freedom suit in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruling, in Freeman's favor, ...

for Sheffield, Massachusetts * Women's World Cup 1999 for the

Susan B. Anthony Susan B. Anthony (born Susan Anthony; February 15, 1820 – March 13, 1906) was an American social reformer and women's rights activist who played a pivotal role in the women's suffrage movement. Born into a Quaker family committed to s ...

for th
Adams Suffrage Centennial Committee
*

Harriet Tubman Harriet Tubman (born Araminta Ross, March 10, 1913) was an American abolitionist and social activist. Born into slavery, Tubman escaped and subsequently made some 13 missions to rescue approximately 70 slaves, including family and friends, us ...

for th
Equal Rights Cultural Heritage Center
*

Jody Conradt Addie Jo "Jody" Conradt (born May 13, 1941) is a retired women's basketball coach. She was the head coach for the women's team at University of Texas at Austin (UT). Her coaching career spanned 38 years, with the last 31 years at UT from 1976 to ...

for

The University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

Tony Robichaux Anthony Ray Robichaux (September 10, 1961 – July 3, 2019) was an American college baseball coach who served as head coach of the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns baseball team. He had previously served as head coach at McNeese State Cowboys baseball, M ...

for the University of Louisiana *

Jerry Coleman Gerald Francis Coleman (September 14, 1924 – January 5, 2014) was a Major League Baseball (MLB) second baseman for the New York Yankees and manager of the San Diego Padres for one year. Coleman was named the rookie of the year in 1949 by Ass ...

for the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

Naismith Coaches Circle
for the

Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pre ...

Coaches of the Year" Werner Ladder Naismith Trophy
for the

* Chuck Bednarik for the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

* Steve Gleason "Rebirth" for the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

Yogi Berra Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of Manager (baseball), manager and Coach (baseball), coach. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball ...

for the

Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center The Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center is a museum on the campus of Montclair State University in Little Falls, New Jersey. It serves to honor the career of Yogi Berra, who played for the New York Yankees and the New York Mets of Major League ...

Shaquille O’Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), known commonly as "Shaq" ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. O'Neal is regarded as one of the greates ...

for

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

Bob Cousy Robert Joseph Cousy (, born August 9, 1928) is an American former professional basketball player. Cousy played point guard for the Boston Celtics from 1950 to 1963, and briefly with the Cincinnati Royals during the 1969–70 season. A 13-time N ...

for the

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private, Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, about 40 miles (64 km) west of Boston. Founded in 1843, Holy Cross is the oldest Catholic college in New England and one of the oldest ...

* Michael Horrocks for

West Chester University West Chester University (also known as West Chester, WCU, or WCUPA, and officially as West Chester University of Pennsylvania) is a public research university in and around West Chester, Pennsylvania. The university is accredited by the Middle ...

Leavander Johnson Leavander Johnson (December 24, 1969 – September 22, 2005) was an American lightweight boxer from Atlantic City, New Jersey, who once held the International Boxing Federation version of the world title. He won the title on June 17, 2005, again ...

for Atlantic City, NJ * Fr. Pedro Arrupe, S.J. *

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

Fannie Lou Hamer Fannie Lou Hamer (; Townsend; October 6, 1917 – March 14, 1977) was an American voting rights, voting and women's rights activist, Community organizing, community organizer, and a leader in the civil rights movement. She was the co-foun ...

for Ruleville, MS * 2nd Lt.

Carol Ann Drazba Carol Ann Elizabeth Drazba (December 11, 1943 – February 18, 1966) was one of the first two American nurses killed in the Vietnam War. She was from Dunmore, Pennsylvania and died in a helicopter crash. Biography Drazba was born in Waterbury ...

, R.N. for Scranton, PA * George Rogers for

Liberty University Liberty University (LU) is a private Baptist university in Lynchburg, Virginia. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia (Southern Baptist Convention). Founded in 1971 by Jerry Falwell Sr. and Elmer L. Towns, Liberty i ...

* "Teamwork" Public Safety for Westminster, CO * Fallen Officers Memorial for Perth Amboy, NJ * 100th Fire Department Anniversary for Bridgeville, DE * W-6 Firefighter Memorial for Worcester, MA * Bearcat for Binghamton University * Golden Eagle in Flight for Clarion University * Panther for

Florida International University Florida International University (FIU) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in Miami-Dade County. Founded in 1965, the school opened its doors to students in 1972. FIU has grown to become the third-largest uni ...

* Hawk for

Monmouth University Monmouth University is a private university in West Long Branch, New Jersey. Founded in 1933 as Monmouth Junior College, it became Monmouth College in 1956 and Monmouth University in 1995 after receiving its charter. There are about 4,400 full- ...

* Statue of Evander Holyfield for Atlanta

Education

Hanlon took graduate level courses towards a Master of Sculpture degree at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

from 1988 to 1990 and left school early to work as a sculptor full-time. Prior to attending Boston University, Hanlon completed a Bachelor of Arts in Art Education at

in 1988. While at Monmouth, he was a student-athlete and captain of the men's cross country team. Before enrolling at Monmouth, he attended

Brookdale Community College Brookdale Community College is a public community college in the Lincroft section of Middletown Township, in Monmouth County, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1967, the college also has regional locations in Neptune Township, ...

and

Kean University Kean University () is a public university in Union Township, Union County, New Jersey, Union and Hillside, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. Kean University was founded in 1855 in Newark, New Jersey, as th ...

and then worked in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

as an

ironworker An ironworker is a tradesman who works in the iron-working industry. Ironworkers assemble the structural framework in accordance with engineered drawings and install the metal support pieces for new buildings. They also repair and renovate o ...

and

teamster A teamster is the American term for a truck driver or a person who drives teams of draft animals. Further, the term often refers to a member of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, a labor union in the United States and Canada. Origi ...

before re-enrolling in Brookdale.

Personal life

Hanlon is married to the former Michele Adamkowski, a soccer stand-out at Monmouth University, and together the couple has five children. Michele was the model and subject of one of Hanlon's first sculptures when he created hi
"Involved Student"
for Monmouth's campus in 1988 that featured her lying on the ground with a soccer ball and gym bag while reading a text book.

References

External links

* includes a 'sculpture finder' for North America {{DEFAULTSORT:Hanlon, Brian American sculptors Living people Brookdale Community College alumni Brown University alumni Kean University alumni Monmouth University alumni People from Toms River, New Jersey Year of birth missing (living people)