Erik Blome is an accomplished sculptor with works that dot the nation. His work encompasses everything from small-scale sculpture and drawings created for display in galleries to publicly commissioned monumental size bronzes for stadiums, cities, museums, universities and public spaces. Large-scale commissioned sculpture works have been permanently installed in the downtown areas of major cities like Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington DC, Dallas, Milwaukee, Alexandria VA, Montgomery AL, and Dayton OH. He also completed a large scale (20 foot tall) steel sculpture project in 2009 in southern Ethiopia. Erik was born and raised in the Chicago area and currently resides in northern California.

Erik attended the University of Michigan where he earned a B.F.A. in Fine Art with a heavy concentration in figurative sculpture. He received his M.F.A. in sculpture from Boston University. Subsequently, he received a Rotary Scholarship and did postgraduate work at the Royal College of Art in London, England, where he received a postgraduate diploma in sculpture and drawing.

Erik has shown his work at galleries and in shows across the country and has completed numerous private commissions and impressive monumental public figurative sculpture works, including (clickable):

Jean Baptiste Pointe Dusable an over life-size bronze bust for North Michigan Avenue (The "Magnificent Mile") in Chicago;

George Washington Carver a life-size bronze figure sculpture of the African-American scientist and inventor for a real estate development company in Arizona;

Thurgood Marshall a life-size bronze bust of the late Supreme Court Justice commissioned by the Mayor's Office of the City of Chicago for the City's newly constructed Thurgood Marshall Public Library;

James Jordan two over life-size bronze portraits commissioned by the Chicago Bulls for the James Jordan Boys and Girls Club on Chicago's west side (1996);

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. a nine and one-half foot tall bronze figure for the YWCA of Greater Milwaukee which was installed on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in Milwaukee in January of 1998;

Duke Ellington a bronze bas-relief for Northern Illinois University (1999);

John Sturdivant a larger than life-size bronze bust of the late Labor leader for the "Great Hall" in the lobby of Department of Labor in Washington D.C.(1999);

12 foot diameter bronze millennium medallion an environmentally themed project for Lake County Forest Preserve in Illinois (2000),

Chicago Blackhawks 75th Anniversary Commemorative Sculpture (six life-size figures for Chicago's United Center - 2000);

Ms. Rosa Parks a life-size bronze figure sculpture of Ms Parks seated on a bus seat for the Rosa Parks Museum and Library in Montgomery, Alabama (2000);

The Spirit of Milwaukee Millennium Art Initiative project entitled "Children of the West End" ;

Jack Benny an over life-size bronze sculpture for the city of Waukegan, Illinois;

Wayne Gretzky "The Great One", a 125% life size bronze sculpture for Staples Center in Los Angeles CA;

Ms. Marie Aull a life-size bronze figure for the Garden Club of Dayton, Ohio; a bust of the renowned African-American scientist,

Dr. Percy Julian for Oak Park, Illinois;

George Graziadio a seven foot bronze likeness of major benefactor and banking icon for Pepperdine University;

Harold and Helen McMaster a double bronze bust for Defiance College in Ohio;

Wisconsin State Firefighters Memorial

"African Elephant" a 2/3 life-size bronze for the Embassy of Cote D'Ivoire in Washington DC.

Presidents F.H. Boigny and Laurent Gbagbo bronze busts of these two African presidents were created ro the newly constructed Embassy of Cote D'Ivoire in Washington DC on Embassy Row near the Dupont Circle.

"Mississippi Harvest" a 28 foot bronze sculpture created for the riverfront and commissioned by the City of Muscatine, Iowa.

Oscar De La Hoya, "The Golden Boy" 125% life-size bronze sculpture for Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA.

Erik's Studio has handled everything from very large-scale commissioned bronze sculpture projects to small awards, commemmorative works and restoration projects.

Erik is very involved in his community and has taught sculpture and drawing at several colleges and art schools, including at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Royal College of Art in London. He was artist-in-residence at American University in Cairo in January of 2009. Currently he is a faculty member of the Academy of Art University in downtown San Francisco where he teaches bronze casting, figure and portrait sculpture, anatomy, and monumental sculpture design.

Additionally, Erik and his wife Charlotte Blome founded and run a not-for-profit 501(C)(3) organization called "When I Grow Up I Want To Be" Inc. which since 2004 has brought art and other supplies (supplied by Dick Blick Art Materials and other donors), art workshops, and attention to kids in Ethiopia and Mexico. The artworks of Ethiopian kids, both orphans and streetkids, have been exhibited widely throughout the USA by the organization.

http://www.whenigrowupiwanttobe.org