The Lucy Clark Gallery & Studio welcomes to its fold artist Robert Bragg, who brings more than 40 years of experience in creative fine woodworking. “I have been in love with woodworking since my grandfather allowed me to play in his workshop as a child,” says gallery owner Lucy Clark. “He was steeped in the tradition of fine furniture making; his attention to detail and finish set the bar pretty high from an early age. After Robert entered the gallery and very humbly mentioned that he created pieces, I was curious to see his handiwork on his site. After a few moments, I knew I had found a fine artist who honored the fine details of his craft. It is truly an honor to represent his work in the gallery.”
Bragg’s work includes a patented design rocking chair handcrafted entirely of wood without any mechanical fasteners. Instead, the chair, which was named a finalist for a 2021 Made in North Carolina award, is bonded together with complex lap joints and mortise tenon joints.
Walnut rocking chair. Robert Bragg, artist
“My designs are original, functional art that are ergonomic and handcrafted with very high-quality standards,” Bragg says. “Numerous customers, physicians and gallery owners have commented on my rocking chair as representing both a piece of functional art and a therapeutic, ergonomic chair design.” Comfort, durability and reliability factor into his designs as well as aesthetics.
Bragg credits his educational background in industrial technology and mechanical engineering, a 35-year career with General Dynamics Corporation and overseas teaching assignments with the skills that feed his creativity. “In fact, I have strived to apply the same quality mindset to my furniture as the critical, high-tolerance parts and assemblies for submarines, rockets and composite aerostructures,” he says. Concepts so crucial in his career are ones he also applies to his woodworking. “Failure analysis fault trees, which identified and recorded potential failure modes in a design and/or process, were a way of business in my critical roles with General Dynamics,” Bragg says. “I apply these concepts to my furniture designs in order to avoid problems, prevent defects and satisfy customers. As the designer, the craftsman (machine operator), the finisher, the manager and the quality inspector, it is absolutely imperative that I ‘build in quality’ in the process to prevent quality defects/issues.”
His newest chair design, stationary rather than rocking, is similar in that the strength of its frame lies in its bonded interlocking joints rather than metal fasteners. “After several prototypes were produced to address balance, center of gravity, comfort, joint design and structural strength, I finished my first new ergonomic Barcelona-style chair to also include the patented flexible lumbar structural slat features,” he says.
Bragg recently designed two music stands in memory of his musician father whom he lost in 2020. “I wanted to find a way to honor him and my brother whose musical influence greatly impacted me,” he says. “I am donating one of my handcrafted, wood-sculptured, heart-shaped music stands to the Brevard Music Center gala to be auctioned to support their Annual Student Scholarship Fund.” Prelude 2026 will be held Saturday, June 13. Learn more at BrevardMusic.org/support/prelude.
See Robert Bragg’s work at The Lucy Clark Gallery & Studio, located at 51 West Main Street, Brevard. Hours are Monday through Saturday 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 12–4 p.m. To learn more, visit LucyClarkGallery.com or call 828.884.5151.
