Galvanizing Highlight from 2015: The Weathervane and Interview with Artist and Sculptor Will Salisbury

Written by: Ali Semeraro

As we begin our journey through the infancy of 2016 we must not forget the great things that happened in 2015. One of which was our project with accomplished artist and sculptor Will Salisbury of Upstate NY, completed in the summer of 2015.

You may be more familiar with his Three Crows sculpture, usually located about a half-mile south of I-81, but now we would like to introduce you to the Weathervane (See photos and photo credits below).

Commissioned by a property owner and Fox network employee, the bear sits atop its perch on a 100-year-old tower located on Comfort Island, surrounded by the natural beauty of the St. Lawrence River in Alexandria Bay New York. The tower is approximately 80 feet in height, see the instillation process here Bear Instillation Video.

Bronze is Salisbury’s medium of choice but due to high demand and the malleability of steel, it has been the ideal material for many of his recent projects, including the weathervane. He states that working with steel is almost like working with clay. “It is very easy to work with.”

In order to preserve all his hard work, Salisbury stated that he chose galvanizing as well as powder coating as the method of corrosion protection because together the duplex coating system is the “perfect marriage” to preserve the sculpture in the surrounding environment. He used the word “permanence” when I asked him about the coating. For some added protection he also uses clear enamel coatings over the details he paints (using automotive paint) after the piece has been powder coated.

Salisbury is very happy with his experience working with Hubbell Galvanizing and Fortress Fusion Coatings. We have been able to help him meet his needs and the needs of his clients. Galvanizing is ideal for projects with larger carvings and details.

I went on to ask him what he does differently to a sculpture knowing it is going to be galvanized after construction. “I have to vent the sculpture. This has to be a discussion with the client beforehand and becomes part of the original drafted design.” Said Salisbury.  

His next project is to be a set of fish skeletons to be installed on the side of an architect’s home, which he says will be galvanized with us as well! We will certainly look forward to this project!

For more information on these and other projects please come back to the blog and please check out Will’s webpage at willsalisbury.com

Skimming the ash away from the bear as it comes out of the galvanizing tank

(Photo credit: Hubbell Galvanizing)

The bear coming out of the galvanizing tank

(Photo credit: Hubbell Galvanizing)

The bear after being powder coated with Will Salisbury the artist standing next to his sculpture

(Photo credit: Will Salisbury)

The bear is almost ready to be installed on the tower

(Photo credit: Will Salisbury)

The bear from his perch in the wind where he will stay for many years

(Photo credit: Will Salisbury)

For more information on the artist, Will Salisbury, please got to: willsalisbury.com

 For more information on galvanizing please go to: Hubbell Galvanizing (www.whyrust.com)

For more information on powder coating please go to: Fortress Fusion Coating Inc. (www.whypowder.com)

25th Annual Sculpture Space, CHAIRity Art Auction 2014

Featuring Hubbell Galvanizing’s Rick Mulvihill

By: Ali Semeraro

This year’s Sculpture Space Charity Auction was held Saturday, October 25^th to benefit the Sculpture Space organization and its “International Artists in Residence Program” of Utica, NY. For several years, donations to Sculpture Space have been an esteemed tradition for Hubbell Galvanizing. It began with Dan Hubbell and his desire to give back to the community and support local artists by bidding on unique and incredible chairs as well as other works of art.

 Sculpture Space was founded in 1976 with the intention of supporting and recognizing contemporary art and artists in our community. (www.sculpturespace.org). These folks have been encouraging creativity since then by holding auctions, demonstrations, lectures, and giving cultural tours throughout the city of Utica.

 Not only does Hubbell continue that tradition today, but also Rick Mulvihill contributes by donating a work of art he crafts himself, utilizing recycled scrap material from our facility here at Hubbell. This year, being so close to Halloween, Rick created a unique and spirited “Web Chair” for the occasion, which was very well received. While I was looking at the completed chair for the first time myself in the gallery, some fellow onlookers were ooing and aweing at its themed whimsy. The chair, as pictured below, was featured in the auction, and went for approx. $500.00.

 The Adirondack style “Web Chair” is made out of repurposed steel scrap and recycled materials welded together and then galvanized, so the hair can weather any environment the new owner decides to display it in. It features a black widow spider perched on a web of steel wire, with a crescent moon and tree branches decorating the base. After galvanizing, the chair was powder coated orange, black and green at Fortress Fusion Coatings, our sister company. The chair is an excellent example of the services we offer not only to steel fabricators, but artisans as well.

 Several other members of the Mulvihill clan were featured in the exhibit and auction including Suzanne Firsching (Serving as this year’s Committee Chair of the auction), Sharon Mulvihill, and Cathleen Mulvihill, making this a wonderful family affair. I have to say I have never seen so much talent in one family! I was lucky enough to experience this year’s auction and got a front row seat while some of the bidding was taking place. It was inspiring to be surrounded by the art and I definitely felt a sense of community and appreciation for our local artists and patrons.

For more information on Hubbell Galvanizing, please visit www.whyrust.com

For more information on Fortress Fusion Powder Coatings Inc., please visit www.whypowder.com

For more information about Sculpture Space, please visit www.sculpturespace.org

A Spotlight on Artwork: Muskie in the Galvanizing Tank

Hubbell Galvanizing and Fortress Fusion Coatings Inc. not only galvanize and powder coat structures, bridge rail and fences, but we also have a lot of artwork that comes through our plant as well. Recently we completed a galvanizing job for the town of Clayton, New York’s fishing competition which features the opportunity to catch the largest muskie (a native fish to upstate New York). Will Salisbury, the artist, created a muskie sculpture out of steel, which we were then asked to galvanize and give it a two-toned powder coat. After our employees took the muskie out of the galvanizing tank, it weighed in at 345 pounds. The fish was then taken over to Fortress Fusion and powder coated with care, and we are proud to say that it came out beautifully. Mr. Salisbury plans on painting on scales, spots/markings, realistic eyeballs and other details on top of the powder coating to fully finish his artwork. We at Hubbell Galvanizing and Fortress Fusion Coatings Inc. are sure the town of Clayton’s residents will enjoy this exquisite piece of art, and we wish to remind our present and future customers that we are always happy to take a look at your steel artwork and give you a quote.

Please feel free to look at our pictures of the process below.

The muskie coming out of the galvanizing tank (See pictures below)

The muskie polished after being galvanized (See pictures below)

  

The muskie after being primed (See pictures below)

The muskie after being powder coated grey (See picture below)

 The muskie after being powder coated with detailing (See picture below)

The muskie prebake (See picture below) 

The finished muskie (See pictures below)

Photos courtesy of Nate Mastro and Emmite White

For more information, please refer to the following websites below:

Hubbell Galvanizing: www.whyrust.com

Fortress Fusion Coatings Inc.: www.whypowder.com

Will Salisbury (the artist): www.willsalisbury.com