John Hebenstreit and the Black Brigade

Visitors to Riverfront Park
in 2011
will find some new pieces
by John Hebenstreit
honoring the history
of the Black Brigade
of Cincinnati.


We will keep you posted
when the actual pieces
have been installed

Tom Tsuchiya and the 50-foot Jesus

Monumental religious statuary
has often been the target
of angry men or gods








And here's what happened
to the monumental
"Touchdown Jesus"
of Solid Rock Church
in Dayton, Ohio






on the evening of June 14, 2010.



(Or was this destruction
caused by an ornery ghost
with strong opinions
concerning public sculpture?)




Whatever the case,
the insurance settlement
offered a great opportunity
for sculptors in a very tight market,






and Tom's team
came up with the winning design.









Here's Tom
working on his
most recent monument,
and the head of Jesus
will be even larger.


And here's Tom describing the process:



Rebar and hardware cloth will cover the substructure defining the general detail of the statue. Urethane foam will cover the wire mesh and will be sculpted into the refined detail of the statue. It will be finished with a top coating of acrylic-based aggregate to resemble limestone.


(and just in case the angry ghosts or deities
are not satisfied with the results,
a lighening suppression system
will be installed as well)






Here's another local news story about the new statue.


and yet another news story
about how donations
have been trickling in.