CEAC-2021-07-July

The Morton Arboretum, in Lisle, is
exhibiting 5 extraordinary pieces of
larger-than-life sculptures from
Daniel Popper.
The pieces stand upwards of 40' and emote notions of nature,
beauty, organic connections and depth.
Popper is a multidisciplinary artist known globally for his organic,
nature-inspired artwork, and the pieces on display now in
Lisle are among the most spectacular.
The local exhibit, Human+Nature, was the first time Popper had
his massive pieces of art manufactured in China and shipped,
with the intent of piecing them together like a massive jigsaw
puzzle.
The concrete was a unique blend, mixed with fiberglass and
other materials to provide it with strength and durability. It had
been painted in China, and all seemed well at first.
But there was a problem.
When Popper, from Cape Town, South Africa, started unpacking
the components for his piece “Thrive,” he noticed that the
paint was distressed.
The paint was not uniform and was peeling. It was also dull and
not representative of Popper’s vision.
What To Do?
Popper and his team started reaching out across the country
to find some help. They had limited time and resources. They
had their small team that was on a tight schedule assembling,
painting and building Thrive and the other sculptures. They
were short on time and manpower to begin with, and started
searching for support.
That’s when Chicago Corrosion Group came in. Recommended
to reach out to Popper by an associate in Las Vegas, the owner,
Warren Brand, texted the team. At first, Popper was asking for
more labor to scrape and otherwise remove the paint. But after
an onsite inspection, Brand recommended a different course of
action.
“The sculpture was erected,” said Brand, “but needed work.” The
seams needed to be closed and the paint was in bad shape.”
Brand presented options. The South African team had started
using hand tools to try to remove the paint and hoped to be able
to spot-repair it. Brand, however, recommended that in order to
obtain a uniform appearance, and the longevity required for a
3-year exhibit, all of the old paint needed to be removed.
“We recommend to our clients overcoating existing paints and
coatings all the time,” said Brand. “But that’s only after a close
evaluation of the existing paint, to ensure it’s capable of accepting
another coating. That wasn’t the case with Thrive. She
needed a new paint job.”
After much discussion and research, Brand recommended a
relatively new type of surface preparation called vapor blasting.
Most readers will be familiar with sandblasting, in which
compressed air is forced out of a hose, and finally a nozzle, with
a metering valve at the blast tank inserting various types of abrasives
into the airstream.
The abrasives can be nearly anything, from different size particles
of sand, blast grit, steel shot, walnut shells, glass aggregate
and garnet, to name a few.
Abrasive blasting, or dry blasting, remains one of the most efficient
and widely used ways to remove paint and prepare surfaces
for paint and coatings. But there are problems — most notably,
dust.
Thrive was located amidst various paths and near a lake at the
Arboretum. People were everywhere. And the work needed to
be completed during the day.
Vapor blasting, while similar in function, is different in one significant
way — instead of using air as the medium to carry the
aggregate, it uses high-pressure water vapor. The aggregate, as
with dry abrasive blasting, is subject to numerous variables.
A third method of blasting was considered: wet blasting. Wet
blasting typically includes the metering of water into the airflow,
(Continued on pg. 40)
Clockwise from opposite left:
-Thrive after molding concrete has been applied.
-Multiple coats of paint can be seen, all of which are distressed.
-Moisture had penetrated into the concrete, and was weeping out. Unlike
crazing, where there are cracks in a film that don’t penetrate the film, these
cracks penetrated down to the substrate.
-Popper’s team attempted to use hand tools to remove the paint but also to
prepare the concrete for the addition of the lightweight, moldable concrete.
Volume 86 · Number 7 | 39