Ted Bradley finds inspiration nearly everywhere he looks, from the texture of the forest floor to the bark of a tree still wet from snowmelt. In his studio in east Boulder, he transforms those creative influences into hand-crafted, porcelain masterpieces that not only illuminate but also beautify interior spaces.
“We don’t create light fixtures—we create light sculptures,” he says. “Every piece has meaning and story.”
Leading by Heart
Bradley was a freshman in high school when he first discovered ceramics. “I had to choose an elective class and I chose ceramics and it just totally consumed me,” he says. “I would quickly eat lunch with my friends and then rush off to the ceramics studio. I’d walk around my high school just covered with wet clay and mud. I looked a little ridiculous. But I was just totally captivated by it.”
His passion for art and design deepened a few years later, when he started taking welding classes and learned how to make metal sculptures. But, when it came time to head off to college, the influential people in his life suggested he pursue engineering as a career, and keep art as a hobby.
Bradley took their advice, going on to earn a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Wisconsin Madison. After graduation, he spent about a decade working in the software industry, rising through the ranks at companies like Google. But, he realized, climbing the tech ladder just wasn’t fulfilling.
He began having dreams about sculptures he wanted to build. “I had to focus on my work, but my mind was just always wandering back to the question of, ‘What if I did pursue this dream to get back to art and sculpture? What if I made it a priority?’” he says. “Eventually, I made a series of decisions to start leading my life a little bit more by intuition and heart.”
In October 2019, he quit his job to become a full-time artist and lighting designer. Bringing his sculptural visions to life, however, was not easy. “I was working as much as 100 hours a week sometimes,” he says. “It was incredibly complex and time-consuming.”
It took Bradley more than a year—and lots of trial and error with 1,400 pounds of clay—to finish his first piece. But he never gave up. His debut collection features delicate, geometrically perfect porcelain rings that each take more than 200 steps and three weeks to make. “My light rings are quite a visually striking form—they have a rounded cross sectional profile like the bones of a rib cage, and emanate light from the inside surface,” he says. “The rings definitely capture your attention.”
His newest offering is the Dome Collection, which includes 60 variations on the classic dome shape—from chandeliers and sconces to pendants and mobiles—that range in size to up to 12 feet.
They’re available in 21 proprietary, custom glazes, which are fired to more than 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit to create a sheer layer of glass over the bright white porcelain. Ranging from matte to high gloss, the glazes can be paired with different types of metal, as well as various patinas, to produce a seemingly infinite number of finish combinations.
“I wanted to start with a quieter, more subdued, familiar form and breathe new life into it with unique and unexpected arrangements,” he says. “The unique aesthetic of the ring form is energizing and unexpected. The soft form of the dome is inviting and comfortable. They each serve different but important purposes in the design of a space.”
Soft and Beautiful
Bradley has learned a lot about himself since founding Ted Bradley Studio six years ago. He used to be impatient, obsessed with optimizing every moment or figuring out which corner he could cut to achieve the desired outcome more quickly. But he learned the hard way that “cutting a corner to save two hours would cost me two weeks,” he says.
“I became more focused and intentional,” he says. “I had to learn to slow down. I stopped measuring progress in days and learned to start measuring in months.”
The Dome Collection, he adds, taught him to go even slower—and to start measuring progress in years.
“Rolling out a new collection isn’t possible in a few months of hard pushing. It takes two years of careful planning, putting one foot in front of the other day after day, like climbing a mountain,” he says. “Building any business is hard. Building a business that produces hardware artifacts at the intersection of the visual arts, mechanical and electrical engineering and porcelain production … I’ve found myself plenty challenged.”
His values have also changed. When he first started his business, he wanted every piece to be a “wow” moment, he says. But, these days, anyone can sketch out a design in 30 seconds, send it to a manufacturer and receive 500 units a few months later.
“Metal, glass and LEDs are mashed together to create an infinite number of impressive forms,” he says. “But is that really what people want in their home? That’s not what I want in my home. I don’t want a loud piece shouting for my attention just to impress a few guests.”
Today, he says, he aims to create works that are “soft and beautiful, subdued and inviting, elegant and understated.”
This story originally appeared in Travel Boulder’s winter/spring 2025-26 print issue. Read the full magazine online.
