June 14, 2026
Clayton, NC, is known for many things, including its rapid growth. The Raleigh suburb is also praised for its strong support of the arts. Like the town itself, a popular feature continues to grow. Clayton Sculpture Trail installed 17 new works for 2026-27, more than twice the number of its first exhibit in 2014.
Now in its twelfth year, Clayton Sculpture Trail gives visitors a free, walkable exhibit of public art displayed throughout the Raleigh suburb of Clayton, NC. The curated exhibit features the work of artists from North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New York, and Washington DC. The selected sculptures are on display at locations throughout Downtown Clayton. Although the sites are permanent, the works change every April, giving more artists an opportunity to share their inspirations, and giving Clayton’s visitors the chance to experience diverse artistry.
In its inaugural year, the Clayton Sculpture Trail consisted of seven works. In 2025, that number had grown to 14. For 2026-27, the Clayton Sculpture Trail presents 17 pieces—its largest collection to date—that vary from abstract to figurative to nature-inspired themes. Every year, Clayton’s Public Art Advisory Board goes through an extensive process to solicit entries and then review the many applications.
The selection committee chose the pieces from 30 sculptors (and 86 submissions) who responded to the call for entries. The committee includes local artists, residents, business owners, elected officials, civic leaders and Town staff. Once chosen, every artist receives an honorarium for each piece to be included in the annual exhibit.
“The Sculpture Trail reflects Clayton’s commitment to fostering creativity, supporting the arts, and preserving the unmistakable charm that makes our Town special,” says the Sculpture Trail’s website.
“Public art plays an important role in creating a vibrant, welcoming community. The Sculpture Trail enhances our public spaces, adds personality to our Town, and creates unique moments of discovery for residents and visitors alike. Each piece contributes to Clayton’s overall quality of life and helps draw new visitors and businesses to the area.”
Visitors have the opportunity to voice their favorites among Clayton Sculpture Trail’s participating artists. The People's Choice award honors the participating sculptor who receives the most votes.
So, let’s take a look at the 2026 sculptors and their works.
Grace Cathey is a Carolina native, metal sculptor and author of Fire and Steel: The Sculpture of Grace Cathey. After graduating from Haywood Community College’s Fiber Arts program, Grace found her passion for metal art when she took a continuing education course in welding. Her work has frequently been featured in public art displays, as well as the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, the United States Botanical Garden in Washington, DC, and the North Carolina Arboretum. Grace was invited to design an ornament for the White House Christmas tree and created a metal piece that represented North Carolina’s state dog, the Plott hound. Her Clayton Sculpture Trail exhibit, Big Al’s Story, is an alligator that celebrates storytelling and learning across generations.
Washington, DC-based artist Matthew Duffy initially studied architecture before veering to sculpture. After graduating from the University of Maryland, he went on to earn an MFA from Goldsmiths College at the University of London. Matthew focuses on public sculpture arts that address specific sites, themes, and community needs. His work has been displayed from coast to coast in the United States, as well as abroad in the UK, Thailand, and United Arab Emirates. Describing himself as “neither a luddite nor a technophile”, Matthew blends a wide array of media and technical expertise to execute artworks that range from monumental-scaled figurative bronzes to engineered steel abstractions and finely carved wooden objects. On display outside Clayton Community Center, Low Poly Open Heart is a hydro-cut, welded geometric heart that allows viewers to see through the form.
Muralist Kirk Seese, of BB Murals, LLC, in Maryland, has shaped his career around public art displays. In his open love letter to public art, Kirk writes, “What I love about you, public art, is that you are meant for everyone. You require no entry fee, no cover charge or special invitation…. You’re out there, in the wild, unapologetic, yet vulnerable, and on display for everyone to see! You must be strong, durable, able to withstand all types of weather, public scrutiny, and the test of time!” His work is displayed on the walls of commercial buildings, municipal facilities, homes, and even climbing walls in New Zealand. For Clayton Sculpture Trail, Kirk stepped away from murals and created Tree Branches, a colorful design with repeating patterns that presents as both organic and inviting.
Jason Morris is a local, self-taught artist, working from his studio in Lillington, NC, about 30 miles southwest of Clayton. After retiring from a career in law enforcement, Jason explored his creative side. In 2011, he began sculpting with driftwood and then delved into reclaimed metal. He says he relaxes “when I can reach down into my soul and create something that people can relate to. When I’m the one in control, grinding them, shaping them, hammering them, heating and welding them into my creations.” His artistry has been featured in public displays throughout North Carolina. Billy and the Strings, Jason’s contribution to the 2026 Clayton Sculpture Trail, was inspired by his love for bluegrass music and one of his favorite performers, Billy Strings. “I’ve always enjoyed Bluegrass music so I made my version of a banjo picker and his band that includes a bird on his hat singing, an iguana on his shoulder playing fiddle, and a squirrel on the base playing bass."
One of two sculptors chosen to be featured more than once in this year’s Clayton Sculpture Trail, Kirk Seese used his lovel of vibrant color that is so visible in his murals. The Pollinator is a smaller version of a sculpture that was commissioned by the BISH Discovery Center in Greenville, OH, as a permanent part of the collection there. This smaller sculpture has been installed in 14 states, including Colorado, Florida, Ohio, Nebraska, Iowa, and South Dakota. Kirk has represented the natural beauty of a butterfly in motion using an upcycled kayak, fire extinguisher tanks, vintage 50s microphone, painted steel wings, clear polycarbonate, and UV inks.
Joni Younkins-Herzog grew up in Atlanta, GA, and earned her Masters of Fine Arts/Sculpture from Indiana University. Her work is exhibited around the country and abroad, in Italy, Colombia, Peru, Poland, and Ghana. She says “My search for beauty and purpose manifests into forms that abstract femininity and vitality. I look at nature’s architecture and infinite variety of forms, appropriating aspects of plants and human anatomy with awe, curiosity, mischief, and humor.” Joni describes her sculptures as “hybrids, psychological mythologies, and manifestations of our bodies.” With her Clayton Sculpture Trail entry, Vuida, Joni presents a large flower form that blends beauty with themes of loss.
Kirk Seese’s third piece in the Clayton Sculpture Trail’s 2026 display explores the simplicity, purity, and beauty of the geometric shape of the icosahedron, a polyhedron with 20 planes or faces, which are all equilateral triangles. You don’t need to be a mathematician to appreciate the artistry of this geometric piece that explores shape and movement, using Kirk’s bold, contemporary style.
Both a sculptor and educator, North Carolina native Adam Walls has dedicated his career to creating and sharing his love of art. His works have been included in public displays since 2004; he earned his MFA in sculpture from Winthrop University the following year. Adam taught in public schools, art centers, private institutions, and has been teaching at the University of North Carolina Pembroke since 2007. He currently heads up the Sculpture program at UNCP. Adam finds inspiration in the shapes of found material—”that leads me to believe that the item could have a different use than what it was originally intended for or a new life that I might imbue by cutting, rearranging, and adding to the form.” Adam’s work, Red Passage, is displayed in the 2026 Clayton Sculpture Trail, and described as a playful work inspired by underwater life and movement.
Craig Gray has been carving stone for more than 25 years. Born and raised in Maine, he relocated to Key West, the opposite end of the East Coast, in 2012. Craig’s art education has taken him to Italy, Norway, and Canada. His public art displays often present whimsy, like a stack of orange or watermelon slices, popsicles, and conversation hearts. For Clayton, Craig worked with the town’s library staff to select book titles for the granite bench carving that is placed in front of the Hocutt-Ellington Memorial Library. The books include classics—Little Women, Lord of the Rings, Charlotte’s Web—popular favorites, and a few by local authors. Novel Idea blends form and function into a piece that will be enjoyed by visitors to the library and the Clayton Sculpture Trail.
Laura Testé blends her unique aptitude for art and mechanics into her figurative bronze sculptures. Her contemporary works present lithesome figures, often dancers, in expressive movement. Originally from a small town in Ohio, Laura earned engineering and design degrees from Stanford University in California. She has had solo and group exhibitions in both the United States and France, where six of her sculptures were displayed at the Salon Peintres et Sculpteurs in St. Tropez. With Inner Muse, Laura used her daughter, a dancer, as the model and created a bronze statue that depicts an unknown muse in a contemplative moment. The piece represents creativity and quiet strength.
Harry McDaniel has a lifelong fascination with how things are made, beginning from the time he used to take apart his pacifiers as an infant in Maine. He began making musical instruments in high school, and became more passionate about the craft while in college, exploring woodwinds. When his mind guided him to even more creative exploration, Harry envisioned large-scale artwork. After years of sculpting with wood, the Asheville, NC, artist moved on to working with concrete, and kinetic sculpture. Harry explains, “Part of the reason that creating public art is so appealing to me is that a visually enticing, abstract sculpture can take on social significance beyond decoration. It can offer a small, uplifting moment to anyone who pauses to explore it.” His piece, Reluctant Prism, is a curved sculpture that uses colored light to create a unique nighttime display.
Beau Lyday’s artistry is largely self-taught, inspired by Gothic and Middle Eastern architecture, Celtic symbols, and sacred geometry. After working 40 years in the furniture industry, he redirected his career to sculpting. From his studio in Valdese, NC, Beau continues to experiment with shaping wood and aged tin roofing, finding beauty in the textures and patinas. He uses reclaimed materials, to honor and preserve the past, a reflection of his love for history. Beau’s large-scale work is both visually compelling and functional, an invitation to engage with the sculpture. For the 2026 Clayton Sculpture Trail, Ever Lasting Arms is a sculptural bench made from reclaimed barn tin. The rose window features a repeating pattern, and the curved arms embrace the visitor. Beau intended the piece to serve as a place of peace and safety, a refuge where people can relax and experience harmony.
In a career that spans four decades, Jim Gallucci has completed more than 50 public art commissions for municipalities, art councils, colleges, universities, private collections, and corporations across the US, and in Australia and Japan. His most recent work utilizes the elements of entries. “I use the format of gates and doors in my sculpture in order to give the public access to my art,” Jim explains. The interactive experience extends to his benches. “Though each can function as a ‘seat’, there is an impracticality of form that lures viewers to explore each bench and try to discover what they are about.” Now part of the 2026 Clayton Sculpture Trail, Key Hole Flutter Arch earned “Best in Show” in the 2020 Sculpture Salmagundi XXIV at the Rocky Mount Imperial Centre for the Arts and Sciences.
Born in Canada and raised in New York, Lawrence Feir began his career as a silversmith and then a photographer for the aviation industry. That endeavor halted on September 11, 2001, when air travel changed forever. Lawrence turned to sculpting, which he had previously studied at Parsons School of Design and the University of Massachusetts. During treatment for cancer at the Cone Health Cancer Center in Greensboro, NC, Lawrence was inspired to design a sculpture for the hospital’s healing garden, where he spent many hours. When Lawrence felt healthy enough, he created The Tree of Hope. In addition, his kinetic wind sculptures adorn a wide range of outdoor spaces. In Clayton, you can see his work, Scorpius, a steel scorpion sculpted from more than 300 pieces of steel.
Glenn Zweygardt began welding at the age of ten, when his father purchased an electric arc welder. More than 70 years later, Glenn has a long career sculpting with cast bronze, iron, marble, stainless steel, stone, granite, and glass. His works have been featured in solo and group exhibitions in the United States, Canada, and China. In his massive studio in Western New York, Glenn fuses dissimilar elements into large-scale structures of varied shapes, rich surfaces, and both transparent and dense forms. Glenn’s work is inspired by nature, and he has deeply researched how to capture something as fragile as a plant and give it immortality through his artistry. Capital Growth features ductile iron and glass castings and presents his belief that “We are all under the guise of nature, the biggest capital growth.”
Like Kirk Seese, Nathan Pierce had multiple pieces selected for the 2026 Clayton Sculpture Trail. Tomorrow Scope is a tribute to visionary thinking. The stainless steel and acrylic sculpture invites people to think about the future. Nathan is, himself, a strong reflection of his past. The son of a third-generation stone mason, he grew up in the Midwest. “I come from a midwest, blue collar family that has been in the construction business four generations, and the idea to create sculpture from those same materials seemed natural and permanent.” Nathan welcomes opportunities to educate and educate viewers through public art displays, to encourage contemplation. His work has been exhibited throughout the Midwest, and all the way to Canada, and is on permanent display around the country.
Nathan’s second selection for inclusion in the 2026 exhibit is Lost Signals, a reflection on the way technology can both connect and isolate people. His abstract contemporary artistry interprets the importance of communication, reminding us to interact on a more personal level. “This sculpture represents some archaic or foreign communication device and, as we observe the sculpture, we wonder how well it may have served its purpose and consider the idea [of] what would happen if we lost technology as a form of communication. Would we still be in touch with one another or would we lose signal?”
Clayton Sculpture Trail is just one of the many reasons to enjoy living in Clayton, NC. Add to that the close proximity to Raleigh, small town vibe, many things to do, affordable cost of living, quality education and healthcare, and a close knit community, and you might want to consider browsing new homes for sale in Clayton, NC.
Just minutes from the growing Downtown Clayton district, Cattail is a new community of waterfront homes for sale near Raleigh. The Cattail lifestyle is defined by luxury homes with large yards, resort-style amenities, and such lakeside features as private docks and a fishing hole.
Quick move-in homes in the first phase are now available to purchase at Cattail, starting at $609,700. Or you can select a homesite and floor plan to build a custom home in this exciting Clayton neighborhood. Contact one of the New Home Specialists to learn about opportunities at Cattail in Clayton. These new homes for sale near Raleigh, NC, are a must-see for lake lovers!