The man behind Tampa’s bronze sculptures

At the Olympics, a gold medal means an athlete is best in sport, but here in Tampa a man has turned bronze into a clear winner.

Chances are you've seen the work of Steve Dickey. His bronze statues are scattered throughout Tampa on sidewalks and street corners, including those in Ybor City.

"I've been at it for about 30 years now," Dickey said of the trade.

He owns Dickey Studios, and he's sculpted famous statues around town like the immigrant statue, Al Lopez and Phil Esposito out front of the Tampa Bay Times Forum.

Right now, he's working on a series of sculptures that will go along the Riverwalk.

"It's the beginning of a whole set of historical figures to go along the Riverwalk," Dickey said. "The first six are coming out this year, and then they're planning on for the next number of years to produce six a year."

Dickey said he uses an oil-based clay that works well in different temperatures. He takes a stick, puts a piece of Styrofoam on it as a base, and then molds clay on top of the base.

That's when he begins chiseling out the details of a face.

"I look at bone structure, general shape of the face, and work from there," he said.

Click on the videos to see more behind the scenes of his process.