THE BIRD AND STONE CUTTER

Two steel sculptures, two different stories, two different sculptors but a bright common future thanks to a two fold solution.

The Public Arts office of the City of Montreal wished to preserve two outdoor sculptures in serious decay. Because of its experience with the benefits of hot-dip galvanizing in everything from lighting poles to bridge rails the city knew the obvious solution to corrosion. But to also respect the original appearance created by the artists a duplex solution of paint over hot-dip galvanizing was chosen.

"The benefits of hot-dip galvanizing in everything from lighting poles to bridge rails, the city knew the obvious solution to corrosion."

The unnamed statue of a bird, modeled after an illustration by renowned Italian-Canadian artist Vittorio Fiorucci was originally commissioned in 1961 to decorate a landmark Montreal restaurant, Chez Vito but when it was later donated to the city its new outdoor location was destroying it despite multiple repainting.  The Stonecutter was created in 1990 by Germain Bergeron to pay homage to the stonecutters who were responsible for so much of the beautiful architecture of New France. Again corrosion was destroying this public work of art.

The restoration process began with removal of multiple layers of paint and corrosion products. This was especially difficult with the statue of the bird which had beautifully detailed texture that couldn't be eroded. The challenge for the galvanizer was to produce an exceptionally smooth galvanized surface which is never easy with sculpture and all the more so when they are previously painted and rusted. The exceptionally well galvanized pieces were then painted resulting in a durable and beautiful duplex finish.

They will now last far longer than either of their creators could have imagined. The bird has returned to his prominent nesting place at the Montreal Botanical Gardens and the Stonecutter is again swinging his mallet along the parkland banks of the mighty Saint Lawrence River.

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