Butterflies and Dragonflies, Haitian Metal Art, Recycled Oil Drum 23

Brand: it's cactus - metal art haiti

Color: STEEL

Features:

• Though it is protected with a weather-proof finish, this sculpture will rust over time, if exposed to outdoor weather. To prevent this from happening, grab a can of spray on enamel at the hardward store and go to it. Once a year should be plenty. It's a snap!
• A few nails and a hammer are all you'll need to hang your sculpture. Look for a place where the design is joined or notched and put the first nail there. Use a second and possibly a third nail, if the piece is large, in other joined or notched design elements within the sculpture to straighten and secure it to the wall. The nails will "disappear" with the piece. Simple as that.
• Fair trade is vital to the village of Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti, where the air rings with the sound of metal banging against metal. Workshops line the streets of the village and outside each are stacks of discarded 55-gallon drums awaiting transformation. To begin the process, the tops of the barrels are removed and the open barrel is stuffed with straw and dried banana leaves and then set ablaze. This burns out the residue and old paint and strengthens the metal. After the barrels have cooled, they are slit down the side, pried open, pounded flat and sanded down, giving the artist a smooth flat surface, much like a painter's canvas. The artist chalks his design onto the metal and then, using a hammer and chisel, begins the work of cutting the sculpture and giving it form, detail and dimension. When he is satisfied with his results, he pounds his signature onto the sculpture and seals it with a protective, weather-proof finish.

Publisher: Haiti

Details: A garden scene a-flutter with butterflies and humming with the sound of dragonflies on a hot summer day. Pour the lemonade, Darling, and please be sure to give me lots of ice!