Woodstock artist turns NHL hockey legends into bronze sculptures
Woodstock sculptor Erik Blome grew up thinking he'd become a painter like his father, but he fell in love with sculpting while attending art school. He since has made a name for himself as a public sculptor who specializes in bronze.
"Bronze is really durable outdoors," he said. "If you spend an enormous amount of time on a piece of work, there's no better material than bronze."
Blome is working on a statue of Borje Salming, a retired Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman, that will have a permanent home outside the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. He's also almost done working on a bronze veterans memorial for the village of Roselle.
Blome sat down to talk with the Daily Herald. Here's an edited transcript.
Q. Is this your profession or something you do on the side?
A. Definitively my profession for the past 20 years or more. I now have an international presence and my work is in 18 states and Canada. I work happily 12 to 15 hours a day, even up to 17.
Q. Do you only work with bronze? Or other mediums are well?
A. When I was young I worked in everything - paper, cardboard, plaster, wood. Now I specialize in bronze. I start with clay that is transformed into bronze through a traditional bronze casting process. I use old-fashoned, water-based clay. Nothing fancy. I have worked a quite a bit in stone. I took part in the Aswan International Stone Carving Conference in 2012, where I made an abstract piece about 13 feet tall out of solid red Egyptian granite that now resides in southern Egypt. I was there to teach sculpture in Cairo on a U.S. Fulbright Award.
Q. Tell me about the hockey sculptures you've created.
A. I created the six life-size bronze hockey players at the United Center in celebration of the team's 75th anniversary in 2000, and I did a 125-percent life-size figure of Wayne Gretzky skating on ice made of stainless steel for the Staples Center in Los Angeles. I got to meet Gretzky and eat dinner with him. A few years ago I was approached by the Toronto Maple Leafs. I have designed a 35-foot monument for them which incorporates all their greatest players, including Salming. I am about halfway done, and it is going to be one of my best, I believe. Fans have really loved it there so far. We unveiled the first three figures last fall. Lots of history, action, jumping and hockey specifics.
Q. What's the process of bronze casting like?
A. It depends on the subject, but I usually spend three to 12 months on single-figure projects. I start with images and video, or preferably the real person. I measure and enlarge using calipers and measuring tools to scale up. I do a drawing at scale and then make a welded steel armature to support the clay. The clay is packed over this and the form is sculpted for months until I am satisfied. A large rubber mold is made, from which I can make a wax positive - which is what we use to do bronze casting.
Q. What equipment do you use? Are there any hazards?
A. It's dangerous like forging, welding and any other metal bending or melting. We pour the metal at around 2,150 Fahrenheit to 2,200 Fahrenheit. We all wear the proper gear, which includes leathers, face masks, shin guards, gloves an shields and we are very careful. We use pyrometers to be precise with heat, and pour our molds at just the right temperature for perfect castings. I also use the highest grade of fine art silicon bronze I can find. The important thing is not how sophisticated your furnace is or how expensive, but how you use it, monitor it and play it safe. It's also important to throw a penny on the hot cup after pouring for good luck with your casting. We always do that.