Installing Light of Hope and Healing at the Hux Cancer Center

Don and I took the bronze sculpture and base to it's final destination, the Hux Cancer Center in Terre Haute, Indiana in a Penske box truck with a lift gate. We were met at the Hux by 3 employees of Sycamore Engineering, who had done the engineering for the center.

Don made 2 boxes similar to what Art Castings had, so that access was available, for bolting the sculpture to the base.

We rented a Genie lift from Art's Rental in Louisville Ky to lift the sculpture onto the base. Mary Kramer, on the right, is with Artspaces Inc. which oversees public art commissions in the area. She worked with me through the whole process and made everything go smoothly.

Another view from the stairs.

Don lowers the sculpture, while Mike feeds the wires from the light through the base.

We set up the sculpture, and moved it a couple of times, before we were sure of the best position. Next, comes drilling holes for the 4 threaded rods that will attach the sculpture to the floor. Mike holds the template for the bottom of the base, while Don carefully marks the holes.

Then, the drilling begins. First Mike...

Then Dave...

Tom gets a turn too! The floor is not that thick, but there was metal to contend with, so it took a while to break through...

Finally, the holes are drilled, the rod fit into the sculpture and then, it is set in place.

...and then, the light is turned on.

Another view of the sculpture.

...and one from the waiting room..
...and finally a detail.

While we were in Colorado...

After we left the foundry on the first day, we decided to rent a car and drive up into Rocky Mountain National Park. We weren't even in the park yet, when we saw an Elk in the road.

We saw plenty of Elk in more scenic areas.

There are lots of photo ops...

We went part of the way up Trail ridge road, but there had been lots of snow and the road was closed about a half mile from where this photo was taken.

We almost got above tree line, but not quite....

A trip to Colorado to get a sculpture

Don and I took a box truck to Colorado to get the sculpture "Light of Hope and Healing" from Art Castings of Colorado.

First, I needed to look at the sculpture and make sure it didn't need any more chasing. Chasing means that the pattern on the bronze matches the pattern on the original clay, particularly where parts were welded together. Don and I went over the whole piece; we couldn't find anything that needed to be cleaned up. The foundry has an overhead bridge crane, which makes it easy to lift a piece onto a table for work. There is a hole through the table so that work can be safely set on it (with threaded rod fit into nuts welded inside the sculpture).

This is Charlotte; she did the chasing on the sculpture. The work she did couldn't be better.

The light fixture had already been attached before we got there, but it needed a little tweaking. The main issue was fitting the globe to the hand so that there wouldn't be any light bleed. Dan welded the hand to make a better fit to the globe, and Ken attached the light assembly and worked the bronze so that the globe would fit down flat and eliminate light from showing between the hand and globe.

This is Dan, who did the welding on the hand.

This is Ken. He really did an excellent job working out the light with help from John Shimp of Lamp Shades Etc. in Louisville Ky. Ken was the main force for bringing the sculpture together while we were there - great guy to work with.

Chad highlights the sculpture. Because I want a very light patina, he is burnishing the sculpture, so that it will stay a lighter color when the patina is applied.

Nate and Chad apply flame to the sculpture as Nate (in the foreground) applies patina.

Nate applies a clear sealant to the sculpture, which will protect the patina.

Nate and Chad, the patineurs. Fantastic job guys, the piece looks beautiful!

This is Jeanne, she is one I go to for quotes and if I have any questions. She is always quick with a response.

Tony wasn't around when I was getting photos of everybody, so this will have to suffice. He is the manager of Art Castings, making sure the foundry runs smoothly.
We did a dry run at the foundry to make sure every works....
The base was created by Bellcomb Technologies and is a granite laminate over honey-combed panel, with a steel frame inside which supports the sculpture.
...another view of the complete sculpture...


....and a view of how it will look from the stairs at the site.

As we left for home, we saw this view in the mirror.