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How cleaning undoes what dogs do to Naperville sculptures

Joseph Naper's enemy might be bird poop.

The Grinch's nemesis could be tree sap.

And Mr. and Mrs. Naperville seem to have a problem with the friendly neighborhood dog's choice of where to lift his leg.

These characters are all sculptures, of course, part of the Century Walk collection in Naperville. And they're all falling victim to common elements - natural and otherwise - that damage works of outdoor art.

As several pieces got a needed cleaning Wednesday, a brother-and-sister team of sculpture experts used fire, water and wax to make all the yuck go away.

"Our primary goal is to keep art as beautiful as we can," said Jo DeDecker, the sister half of Sculpture Services of Colorado, which was hired by Century Walk to clean and maintain 22 sculptures this week. "All bronzes will eventually turn green if you don't protect them."

The cleaning process starts with water: power-washing the sculpture to wipe away any white bird poo, dark tree sap or green discoloration from mineral growth or urine stains.

"If you see a real green spot on the bottom, that means it's been 'marked,'" said David DeDecker, the brother half of the team, as he prepared to power-wash "Mr. and Mrs. Naperville" near the Millennium Carillon along the city's Riverwalk. "Dogs walk by and they like to mark it."

Then comes the fire - or a propane blowtorch, really, the kind used to ignite weeds for controlled burns. Jo and David each hold a torch in their left hand, powering it on with the roar of a roller coaster at full speed and then letting it die down while they use a brush to apply conservator's wax.

"It just protects the sculpture from anything that might happen," David said. "If there's a layer of wax on there, all we have to do is heat it up and take it off."

Some substances, such as dog urine, might take an extra neutralizer to truly go away, but the DeDeckers pack all those necessities in a trailer attached to the truck they drive across the country as they work to keep art in tiptop shape.

It was time to focus on maintenance this year as Century Walk approaches its 20th anniversary next spring, said Brand Bobosky, chairman of the nonprofit public art group that has placed 47 pieces of art in Naperville since its founding. The cleaning and maintenance being conducted this week will cost about $11,000 "to maintain the high quality" of the art, he said.

Century Walk connected with the DeDeckers through Mary Lou Wehrli. She's friends with the DeDecker family, which also includes the creator of the "Spirit of the Y" sculpture installed at the Fry Family YMCA, artist Jane DeDecker.

"I think that maintenance shows a strong commitment to the ongoing health and beauty of each work of art," Wehrli said. "I expect some of them will shine with new vigor and sparkle."

  David DeDecker of Sculpture Services of Colorado power washes the "Mr. and Mrs. Naperville" sculpture Wednesday in Naperville. He and his sister have been hired by Century Walk to clean and maintain 22 sculptures in Naperville. Bev Horne/bhorne@dailyherald.com
  A propane blowtorch heats up the "Mr. and Mrs. Naperville" sculpture Wednesday while it undergoes a cleaning by brother-and-sister team David and Jo DeDecker of Sculpture Services of Colorado. Bev Horne/bhorne@dailyherald.com
  David DeDecker and his sister Jo DeDecker clean "The Cat in the Hat" Wednesday in Naperville as they work to maintain 22 bronze pieces that are part of the Century Walk public art collection. Bev Horne/bhorne@dailyherald.com
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