Weathering effects on metal sculptures
Graepels UK and Ireland have been in production for over 56 years and have had the opportunity to be apart of many incredible projects working with a wide range of industries, including artists and sculptures. In one of our recent posts we revisited a previous project when working with talented artist Alex Pentek on his creative ‘Unfurl sculpture’ within the blog we addressed the effects of weathering and the change that it makes to the appearance of the sculpture. Metal sculptures and statues have marked some of the most iconic destinations in the world and are a symbol that will be the landmark of a destination for many a lifetime. Metal sculptures can be the sole reason that a tourist will travel far and wide to see history within art. In this blog we will address two of the worlds most famous sculptures and the metals that are used to create them, along with the different effects that weathering has on them over time.
The Statue of Liberty
The iconic statue is placed near the New York city harbor and was named ‘Liberty enlightening the world’ and celebrates the signing of the United States declaration of independence. The statue of liberty stands 305 feet tall, and used 31 tons of copper and 125 tons of steel. As expected the construction of the Statue of Liberty was a long and costly project. What is very interesting about the piece is the way that the material has weathered over time completely changing the appearance of it, as seen on the image below, what the Statue would have looked like before it’s copper outside weathered and changed color.
Effects of weather on copper
The statue of liberty has experienced over 125 years of natural weathering. Over time this resulting in eventual change of color from a bronze to green. This effect known as Patina which occurs when there is a chemical reaction between water and the metal of the sculpture.
Metal types –
There are metals that have been proven to be immune to chemical wearing, such are known as ‘noble’ metals which include, gold ,platinum, silver .
Many people will be aware of the chemical effects of weathering on steel, rust has been a big issue effecting the value of products that feature in day to day life such as cars and many other machines and structures . Weathering effects are a natural cause that can the appearance of a sculpture depending on its material. Most type of iron will rust quick however there are kinds of steel such as stainless steel that are highly resistant to chemical weathering such as cast iron a good example of a cast iron sculpture would be the Eiffel Tower.
The Eiffel Tower
Made up of cast iron the Eiffel tower is highly resistant to any rusting and should last for many centuries to come, the french tower is not only and iconic landmark but is also also a technological masterpiece in building construction history, more than 100 plans were submitted in its production process. The Eiffel Tower weighs 10,000 tons and required 7,300 tons of iron, 300 workers and 18,038 pieces of wrought iron. The tower also has almost 7 million visitors every year,the majority of them from other countries.
A few things you may not know about Eiffel tower!
.The Eiffel Tower was originally intended for Barcelona, Spain, but the project was rejected.
.The Eiffel Tower was built for the 1889 Paris Exposition and was not intended to be permanent.
. During WW2, when Hitler visited Paris, the French cut the lift cables on the Eiffel Tower so that Hitler would have to climb the steps if he wanted to reach the top.
. The paint on the Eiffel Tower weighs as much as 10 elephants.
Incase you missed it!
In a recent blog we revisited ‘Unfurl’ a very impressive art piece, a stunning metal sculpture designed by the talented sculptor Alex Pentek. Pentek’s design of geometric patterns were perforated into Bronze sheets. The sculpture was made for Ashton school in cork, for more information click here.