Laran Bronze

{{Short description|Fine art foundry in Chester, Pennsylvania}}

{{use mdy dates|date=September 2020}}

Laran Bronze is a fine art foundry in Chester, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1984 by Larry and Randy Welker in facilities built for the city's once-booming shipbuilding industry, the foundry has cast many monumental and significant sculptures, including many of the bronze components of the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.{{Cite web|last=Mastrull|first=Diane|date=February 2, 2015|title=The little-known source of America's bronze artwork in Chester|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210227111250/https://www.inquirer.com/philly/business/20150202_The_little-known_source_of_America_s_bronze_artwork_in_Chester.html|url=https://www.inquirer.com/philly/business/20150202_The_little-known_source_of_America_s_bronze_artwork_in_Chester.html|archive-date=February 27, 2021|access-date=2020-09-24|website=inquirer.com|language=en-US}}{{Cite book|last=Brown|first=Stephen R.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lJXpwYD_izUC&q=wwii+memorial+laran+bronze&pg=PT9|title=Jewel of the Mall: The World War II Memorial|date=2005|publisher=Stephen R Brown Publishing|isbn=978-0-9766150-0-2|language=en}} In 1985 or 1986, the foundry cast replicas of the hands of painter Andrew Wyeth; in 2019, one of these replicas sold at auction, along with a Wyeth painting, for $490,230.{{Cite web|title=From The Artist's Hands: Andrew Wyeth Painting & Cast Bronze Hands Sell For $490,230 At Leland Little|url=https://www.antiquesandthearts.com/from-the-artists-hands-andrew-wyeth-painting-cast-bronze-hands-sell-for-490230-at-leland-little/|access-date=2020-09-24|language=en-US}}

The components cast at Laran for the WWII Memorial include four 18-foot columns, eight eagles with 10- to 12-foot wingspans, two 10-foot wreaths, and 24 plaques.

Other works cast at Laran Bronze include:

• Holodomor Memorial, Washington, D.C.{{Cite news|last=Dietsch|first=Deborah K.|date=2014-07-24|title=Local architect designs Washington memorial to victims of genocidal famine in Ukraine|language=en-US|work=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/magazine/local-architect-designs-washington-memorial-to-victims-of-genocidal-famine-in-ukraine/2014/07/22/a7315c0a-fbe9-11e3-8176-f2c941cf35f1_story.html|access-date=2020-09-24|issn=0190-8286}}
• Keys to Community, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania{{Cite web|last=Smith|first=Eric|date=2007-10-03|title=Artist Spotlight: James Peniston|url=http://www.uwishunu.com/2007/10/artist-spotlight-james-peniston-2/|access-date=2020-09-24|website=Uwishunu - Philadelphia Blog About Things to Do, Events, Restaurants, Food, Nightlife and More|language=en-US}}
• Gregor Mendel, Villanova University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• The U.S. Air Force Honor Guard Memorial, Arlington, Virginia{{Cite web|title=The U.S. Air Force Honor Guard Memorial|url=https://www.codaworx.com/projects/the-u-s-air-force-honor-guard-memorial/|access-date=2020-09-24|website=CODAworx|language=en-US}}
• Brigadier-General John Gibbon statue, Gettysburg battlefield, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
• Sculptures on the Square, Charlotte, North Carolina{{Cite web|date=2010-03-19|title=Commemorative Landscapes of North Carolina|url=https://docsouth.unc.edu/commland/monument/448/|access-date=2020-09-24|website=docsouth.unc.edu|language=en}}
• Gem of the Lakes, 311 S. Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois