![\"\"](\"https:\/\/magazines.uthscsa.edu\/schools\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/11\/Duncan_Dodge_Sculpture_Post-300x300.jpg\")
A couple of years ago, he decided to create a sculpture of someone he considers instrumental to the success of the School of Dentistry\u2014Dean William W. Dodge, D.D.S., whom Dr. Duncan has known for 40 years.<\/p>\n
\u201cI showed him some of the sculptures I\u2019ve done of others, and I said, \u2018I want to do one of you,\u2019 \u201d Dr. Duncan said. He says Dr. Dodge\u2019s modesty made him hesitant to agree. But Dr. Duncan insisted he wanted to donate it to the university to honor Dr. Dodge\u2019s dedication to the dental school. The dean finally agreed, and Dr. Duncan started the work a couple of years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very, very, very slow,\u201d said Dr. Duncan, who presented the finished bust to Dean Dodge last December. \u201cA good artist can do one of these in a couple days, but it takes me a couple months.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr. Duncan never expected to be a dentist, much less a sculptor. He originally planned to be a college professor, but his admiration of his older brother drew him in a different direction.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was 12 years older, and he flew in World War II,\u201d he said. \u201cHe did combat missions, he was shot down, and he was a prisoner of war. He was my hero.\u201d<\/p>\n
So when Dr. Duncan had the chance to become a U.S. Navy pilot, he went from earning his bachelor\u2019s in biology straight into 16 weeks of ground training. During his four years flying planes for the Navy, he spent time with dentists aboard an aircraft carrier.
\n\u201cI spent a lot of time in the dental office with them, and I fell in love with what they did,\u201d he said. \u201cI decided this is what I wanted to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
With the Korean War over and the Navy reducing the number of pilots, Dr. Duncan volunteered to leave so he could pursue a dental degree. After a couple of years in general practice, he realized what he really loved was oral and maxillofacial surgery, which he practiced until he retired in 2008 and then came to teach at the university.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s something about being around young people who are so eager to learn,\u201d said Dr. Duncan, who isn\u2019t quite ready to retire from teaching. \u201cThat feeling of eagerness of the young mind and thinking I can contribute something to that. As long as I can mentally keep up with it, it\u2019s hard to get away from it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
James Duncan, D.D.S., adjunct professor of oral and maxillofacial surgery, now uses his skilled hands to create facial artistry with clay. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":456,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"magazine":[23],"issue-year":[20],"featured-story":[],"class_list":["post-385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","magazine-salute","issue-year-20"],"yoast_head":"\n