Materials, Durability, The Process

Materials

Beau sculpts with non-corrosive metals: copper, brass, and stainless steel. He cuts, shapes, and brazes copper with brazing rod, an amalgam of brass that produces bronze when fused with copper. These metals are permanent and beautiful. Regular steel rusts. Stainless steel remains pristine. Copper develops what is known as a patina, a permanent surface layer that artists and art appreciators consider beautiful.

Unlike rust, the patina is permanent and will not erode the sculpture. To produce the patina, Beau bathes the sculpture in acid and treats the Frog to a secret patina process. Bronze sculpture typically has such a patina. So do these copper frog sculptures. A copper frog is very much like a bronze frog. The copper frog is original art, not created from a mold, as is a bronze.

Durability

Beau produces a sturdy and durable sculpture. Where the sculpture needs to be reinforced, he reinforces it. The intention of design and method is to create permanent monumental sculpture, capable of standing the test of time. The work is permanently installed in many public places. The patina will remain. Chemicals in the environment can alter the patina slightly. A force such as a constant flow of water on an area of the sculpture can eventually remove or change the patina. Some sculptors complete their patinas with a varnish or other type of sealant, thus delaying the inevitable affects of the weather. Beau prefers to allow the metal to "breathe". He says it is more natural that way, and, he adds, more beautiful.

The Process

Beau Smith, now in his mid-forties, has worked in this medium of brazed metal sculpture since he was a teenager. He cuts, shapes, hammers, and brazes copper to produce maximum expression and integrity in the metal.

A Frog generally takes between one and two weeks of intense labor, then another week to apply the patina. It is a labor of love and also of care. The work can be dangerous and requires constant awareness. The effort, though, is worth it. The result is beautiful and fun.

Copper frogs come from the process of direct metal sculpting. Bronze frogs and other bronze sculpture results from a mold. This is the main difference between Beau Smith's copper frog and a bronze frog. Otherwise, the copper frog is similar to a bronze frog.