Hello to Pixydish and Everyone Here...
PD...Thank you for the great pix of the Huntington installations! I'm new here and just happen to be a concrete "Faux Bois" sculptor myself ("Faux Bois" being the French term for "False Wood" & the school of art that those great looking arbors fall into. It is also known as "El Trabajo Rustico" ..."the Rustic Work" in Spanish). I am also working on a book on the subject that goes into the history, artists, processes and techniques involved and I'm always on the look-out for work of this type that I haven't seen before.
I have already contacted the Huntington to try and get more info on this particular installation, but would like to take this opportunity to invite any & all members here to keep an eye out for any such work and to please contact me if you know of or come across any. A surprising amount of it is already listed on the National Register of Historic Places, but I am certain there is a lot more out there that has simply been forgotten or overlooked. Please...help me find these treasures. They are tucked away in just about every part of the US and were often the work of locals, so if you know of any...please...help me record them and give proper credit to the artisans & craftspeople who created and left us these wonderful things to enjoy.
This is an almost "lost" art form that only a handful of people are currently involved in. Sadly, most of the techniques were regarded as "trade secrets" by the old practicioners and lost to time. My mission is to change that. Besides the book, I am also working on a website that is dedicated to preserving the art form and demonstrating how anyone can learn to craft these fascinating and enduring works. I honestly believe that, armed with the right info...anyone here can craft work that could not only earn a spot in history some day, but enchant generations along the way.
Here's a pic of one of my latest pieces, a table & bench set. All in steel reinforced concrete & cement. I fully expect it to still be functional hundreds of years from now or even millenia.
Thank you all and keep on crafting.
Tango
