American sculptor
Jeff Decker is a sculptor and historian who is known for his bronze sculptures, the most notable of which is titled "By the Horns" (also known as The Hill Climber), a 16-foot-tall, 5,000-pound bronze located on the grounds of the Harley-Davidson Museum.[1] His bronze-cast sculptures depicting the synergy of man and modern machines, particularly historic motorcycles, is known in both the motorcycling community and the world of fine art.[2] As of 2009[update], Decker was Harley-Davidson's official sculptor.[3]
Professional background
Decker is the son of Allen and Lana Decker. Steeped in the southern California car culture of the 1960s, Decker learned the ways of his father.[4] An intense collector, Decker's father owned one of the area's largest flathead speed equipment collections.[citation needed]
Working full-time at a bronze casting foundry, Decker's first idea was to capture Man's quest for speed in all vehicles. His first sculpture was a 1924 Miller Indy car. Next came the Baby Bootlegger, a 1922 world record-holding speedboat.[5]
On display at Bob Dron Harley-Davidson located in Oakland, California, Decker created a life-size bronze statue from a famous photograph of Joe Petrali showing him astride a Harley Streamliner, taken during Petrali's historic 136 mile per hour record setting run at Daytona on March 13, 1937.[6] and is the only bronze sculpture artist licensed by Harley-Davidson to replicate their products. Decker also created a five-foot-tall, about 1,000-pound bronze of Elvis with a Harley-Davidson motorcycle he owned, a 1956 KHK model.[3]
