Photos courtesy of Tom Bradford

Tom’s photo taken for the Featured Artist by Ray Barwick at the Surf City Community Center Exhibition August 2006

Making the scene…

The power of expression is a priceless commodity.  Most people you talk to will say that being able to project themselves onto paper or canvas is one thing they have always wished they could do but just don't have the talent for. The ability to create an image that people understand and find visually appealing is a true gift, an art form.

It's an ability that Surf City resident and master artist Tom Bradford finds very gratifying.

Tom has been quoted as saying, "My drawings and paintings give common everyday objects the illusion of being exotic."

His work has been around the island since the mid-1980s, but he has been an artist all of his life.  Having received a Masters of Fine Arts degree form the University of Alabama, his work has been shown extensively throughout the Southeastern United States and is included in a number of private and museum collections.  It is also displayed in the corporate collections of Duke Medical Center, Northern Telecom, and the Charlotte Observer.

An island calls….

He was a member of the "Visiting Artists Program" which began in 1971 as a cooperative effort between the North Carolina Arts Council and the State Department of Community Colleges.  The program was designed to enhance the appreciation and cultivation of the arts within the college and its local communities.

When he was invited to represent the program for a year at the Coastal Carolina Community College in Jacksonville, North Carolina, he knew he did not want to live the city life.  He started searching for something a little quieter.  That is when he found Topsail Island.

"It was a small fishing village back then," says Tom.  "It was real laid back.  I thought it was a good place to stop traveling for a while."

Tom remembers the old Pirates Den pizza place and the Mermaid bar in Surf City.  Both are gone now but they were, in the earlier days of Topsail, considered popular icons on the island.

"It was a melting pot here, a transitory environment.  People were coming from all over.  I liked that."

Needless to say, like many of us, Tom instantly fell in love with Topsail Island.

"It was the ambiance, the lifestyle," he explains.  "My personal inspiration was coming from here.  It was good for me.  It was such an opposite sort of environment and it was clean.  It is still very inspirational for my work."

Concerning the picture right and above: "Metamorphosis" and "Metamorphosis 2" were commissioned major pieces of artwork for the Sixth International Reflective Practice Conference, which was held at Duke University.  This was a conference for midwives and nurses and was the first one held in the United States.

Tom projected the birth of a butterfly from its first moment of life through the cocoon phase and ending at maturity shown by the opening of its beautiful orange and black wings.

Artist and teacher….

Tom has shared his talent for teaching art at many schools including Pender County where he was the visual arts instructor.  He worked with Kindergarten through 5th grade and 7th through 8th grades, too.

"I actually liked it from the teaching point of view," he says with a laugh.  "My mom was a school teacher."

In fact, he has taught at several school systems throughout the state.  He was also the director of theatre art galleries in High Point and a program coordinator and instructor for the Duplin County Summer Arts Program for handicapped and underprivileged children.

Being a talented artist also allows you to get your feet wet in many genres, including the entertainment industry.  Tom was a scenic design painter for Screen Gems Studios in Wilmington, North Carolina, where he painted designs for the movies, "Timepieces," and he designed scenes for the movie, "The Member of the Wedding" for Carolco Studios.

Furniture design is also a form of art for Tom.  He has designed furniture and accessories for a Wilmington company, Rainbow Collectables.  He learned to cut wood, something he had never done before.  He made all type of sea horses, mermaids, fish trays, and other flashy furnishings.  Some of this experience prepared him to make the beautiful beach signs you see around the island.

Some of his beach sign artwork can be found in the book, Beach Signs by Mark Wohlander.  He is also recognized in the new book, They Changed the State:  The Legacy of North Carolina's Visiting Artists, which can be found through the North Carolina Arts Council.

Sign, sign, everywhere a sign….

Finding your way throughout Topsail Island is easy enough, one road in and one road out.  It's what you see along the way that makes the difference.  As you mosey around the island, pretty soon you start to notice the beach signs that decorate lots of the houses. Tom Bradford is the talent behind many of those signs.

"I do have a whimsical side.  It allows me to get a little cartoon in it."

"Legal Ease," "Life's A Beach," “On the Beach,” and "Happy Ours," are just a sampling of the artwork he designs for Walt Dodge, owner of the local sign company, Unique Signs.  You will see many of them hanging on the homes as you drive by.  Most represent the unique personalities, and sometimes career path, of its owner.

As you read them, you may get the impression that spending any time at all on Topsail Island changes you.  (Well, most agree that it does!) The delightful sign "Kickin' Back" emulates a certain relaxed attitude, an attitude that you will find among most of our Topsail Island inhabitants.

There's one thing for sure. Tom is devoted to his craft.  But just what would he have done if he wouldn't have found art as his life's work?

"Automotive mechanic for NASCAR,” he says.  “Now that's an art form, too."

Tom had a want and an attitude for it.

"I really wanted to get to the drag strip and make cars.  When I was younger, I thought the art thing was kind of prissy.  It's okay to do a few cartoons but let's not get too whacked out about the deal."

It wasn't long after that he realized that art was his true calling and it's been his life ever since.  No turning back now, the beach has claimed him.

"Painting is my main gig," he says with a chuckle.

SHEREE´ L. ALDERMAN is a long-time writer and journalist and the publisher of www.topsail-island.info, a website focused on the Topsail area.  She also directs the Hampstead Chorus and spends as much time as she can with her lovely granddaughter, Mari.

Note:  The signs mentioned above were featured in the winter 2007 issue of Topsail Magazine in the article on the book Beach Signs .  .  . Topsail Island, North Carolina.  You can also see them online at www.topsailmagazine.com. 

Tom Bradford can be reached directly at 910-328-0335. 

For more examples of Tom and Walt’s work check out the site HERE.