Biography

Bruce Bennett’s Artist Statement

My work with stone and creating objects in marble and granite has been self-taught. As I learned the history of marble in East Tennessee and its use throughout the United States, I also learned a few skills necessary to cut, shape, and polish it. I incorporated it into my woodworking and used only marble for furniture and sculpture. Eventually, I used it with other materials, such as glass, metal, and neon. 

Tennessee marble is one of the best materials in the world for displaying outside, and it is ideal for gardens and parks and for creating outdoor environments. My work is primarily outdoor pieces to show the value of nature and enhance the enjoyment Tennessee Marble brings.

I am, in my modest way, learning from the stone working tradition, the uses of Tennessee marble past and present, and practices I can personally employ to enhance the beauty of the natural landscape with this native stone. The tangible results of my efforts are furniture and sculpture from East Tennessee marble, engraving the history of the people who worked this marble and used it in art and architecture. As my art grew, I desired other stones and colors and learned to work with marbles and granites from around the world. I love working with stone because it has character and invokes a peaceful, warm, sensual feeling.

  • The Marble Mansion at Spring Creek

    5000 Spring Creek Rd aerial photo

    The Bruce Bennett Marble Mansion at 5000 Spring Creek Road in Knoxville is the artist’s home and garden, transformed over a lifetime through his work with marble. The property incorporates sculpture, architectural details, mosaics, and stonework throughout the house and grounds. Bennett’s home became an evolving work of art, reflecting decades of experimentation with Tennessee…

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  • Bruce Bennett 1950-2025

    Bruce Bennett with his pigeon image

    Nature lover, Stone carver, Deep thinker, Dreamer Bruce could look at a hunk of stone and see what was inside of it–often a fish, sometimes a snake, a caterpillar, a torso, a saint. While much of Bruce’s work was architectural, he was responsible for some of Knoxville’s notable public art. For many years Bruce’s office…

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  • Bruce Bennett: Alien Monoliths

    Bruce Bennett video

    Bruce Bennett talks about his alien monolith series in this video taken March 6th, 2023, in Knoxville, TN, at the Spring Creek Sanctuary. The series is based on archaeological imagery from ancient Mexican civilizations, composing a storyline of an encounter between native people and interstellar visitors. Bruce made five finished panels for this project; there…

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  • A Mosaic Driveway by Bruce Bennett and Allison Roberts

    The summer of 2020 was difficult for everyone. COVID was the new epidemic, and we were all confined to our quarters. Bruce Bennett had an idea to break the boredom of quarantine.

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  • Three Eggs in Space Fabrication

    Three Eggs in Space sculpture by Karen Bailey

    Bruce Bennett and the talented craftsmen at Custom Marble and Design fabricated Three Eggs in Space for artist Karen Bailey in 2010. The sculpture stands today in Alexandria, Virginia. Photo from the Public Art Archive https://publicartarchive.org/art/Three-Eggs-in-Space/b1aa9139

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  • Boyd’s Garden | Bruce Bennett Sculpture

    Fountain designed by Sandi Burdick for her South Knoxville Garden fabricated by Bruce Bennett

    The garden at Tom Boyd and Sandi Burdick’s South Knoxville home was featured twice by the Knoxville News Sentinel. Sandi and Bruce worked collaboratively on sculptures throughout the sprawling, themed greenspace. The resulting garden entered through a traditional Japanese Tori archway, Japanese plum yew, a trio of Japanese maples, and artist Bruce Bennett created marble…

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  • The Children’s Table at UT Gardens

    Image of Children's Table at UT Gardens by Bruce Bennett - in use

    Bruce Bennetts Children’s Table at UT Gardens September2006

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  • The First Sculpture Symposium

    Sculptor JD Adcoc Tennessee marble sculpture from Bruce Bennett’s 1998 sculpture symposium at Custom Marble & Design in the historic Candoro Marble building in Knoxville

    “What we would like to do is bring community and art together.” In 1998, Bruce Bennett hosted the first sculpture symposium at Custom Marble & Design in South Knoxville. Bruce invited sculptors to work with Tennessee marble he provided, bringing artists together to explore the native stone and create new work. The first symposium featured…

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  • Bruce Bennett First & Future 50 Award

    Bruce Bennett in 1997 with the KNS award.

    Bruce Bennett in May 20, 1997, with the plaque he made for the Greater Knoxville First & Future 50 Awards. View the original article (PDF)

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  • Bruce Bennett Creates at Candoro

    Bruce Bennett at Candoro Marble in 1997

    1997 Knoxville News Sentinel Home & Garden feature on Bruce Bennett. Ronda Robinson featured Bruce Bennett in the Knoxville News Sentinel Home & Garden section in 1997. “Bennett says he likes stone because it has character and invokes a peaceful, warm sensual feeling.” Read the KNS Friday, March 14, 1997

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