Mercury Sculpture for Los Angeles Athletic Club

Los Angeles Athletic Club Mercury

LAAC MERCURY
Stainless Steel.
17 feet tall.
2018
Commission for the Los Angeles Athletic Club

Just a few blocks from the Disney Concert Hall and the Broad Museum, Mercury is a new sculpture installed at the Los Angeles Athletic Club in bustling downtown LA. When combined with its pedestal, it stands 17 feet high, spans two floors and weighs close to 1,000 pounds.

The sculpture was cast in stainless steel, a deliberate decision to create a bright, contemporary feel to one of the most celebrated gods in sculptural history.

Commissioned as part of an ongoing multimillion-dollar renovation, Mercury has been the symbol of the Los Angeles Athletic Club for over a century. My goal for Mercury was to capture that instant prior to taking action; to symbolize the focus and effort fundamental to any great success.

Mercury installed with programmable LED oculus and spots.

The sculpting of Mercury in progress.
Chavant Professional plastilene clay over polyurethane and steel armature.

Finishing the final stainless steel surfaces using grit bast and lots of orbital sanding.
Stainless steel is much harder and difficult to work than bronze and its melting temperature is about 1000 degrees higher than bronze.
I've developed this finish over the years working with the amazing folks at MC3 foundry. Most often stainless steel is mirror polished. But for figures, I love this finish. It has a brightness but it is still readable.

Artist Richard Becker sculpting the back anatomy for Mercury.

RICHARD BECKER

Los Angeles Athletic Club Mercury