The figures were due for a bath. The DeDeckers came ready to scrub.
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Jo DeDecker and her brother David, natives of Loveland, Colo., spent two days recently restoring 17 of Naperville’s Century Walk sculptures to their original sheen. Their company, Sculpture Services of Colorado, was contracted by the Century Walk Corp. as part of a relatively recent emphasis on consistent upkeep of its assets.
“I think our goal is to keep art clean,” said Jo, 59, eyeing up the “Reading Children” sculpture that faces Jackson Avenue at the southwest corner of the Nichols Library building Wednesday morning.
The pair of children’s figures in the piece has had its arms and heads patted by innumerable visitors in the 27 years since the sculpture was made, wearing down the finish in those places. Perhaps there’s been fruit juice splashed on the piece, or pine sap. The minerals in rainfall and the bleaching effects of the sun have left marks, along with urine and droppings from assorted creatures. Earlier that morning, when the DeDeckers set about cleaning “Veterans’ Valor” in Central Park, three mice had come scurrying out from under the boots of the five military figures represented by the sculpture, they said.
“It’s like ‘mice and men,'” said Jo.
Most of the pieces are fully ready for some TLC.
“It’s been years,” said David, 53. “Some of these have probably never been cleaned.”
W. Brand Bobosky, Century Walk’s founder and board chairman, said time has begun to take a toll on many of the 46 pieces that comprise the nonprofit’s collection of public art.
“Until two or three years ago, our focus had been on creating public art – getting it out there, trying to tell the story and adding it to our collection,” said Bobosky, 75, noting that a greater need for maintenance had become evident lately. “Our mission is to not only have public art, but to maintain it.”
Formerly covered by board members and other volunteers, the professionally contracted work was done using about one-quarter of the $44,000 grant Century Walk received in the most recent cycle of the city’s Special Events and Cultural Amenities fund awards, Bobosky estimated. Funded by revenue from the food and beverage tax collected in the city’s restaurants and bars, the program earmarks about $1 million – more than half of the funds available for local distribution annually – for standing agreements. Century Walk maintenance became one of those automatic line items earlier this year.
“When we first started, we tried to work with the artists,” Bobosky said. “We did not have a lot of money, and there was a quid pro quo, that they were going to have a piece for their portfolio that was going to be seen by thousands of people over the years.”
Keeping up on the upkeep eventually was too much, however. Century Walk turned to the city with a $49,000 SECA request, so professionals could be hired.
“It’s bringing up all these pieces to what they were like when they were installed,” he said.
Bobosky emphasized Century Walk’s growth period is far from over. The corporation is still creating art, he said, currently partnering with Marquette Companies on the Water Street commercial redevelopment downtown, and with North Central College on another project. Century Walk also plans to install a life-sized replica of Abraham Lincoln in Central Park about a year from now and is taking artists’ proposals for that piece now.
“We haven’t stopped,” Bobosky said. “There’s no moratorium here.”
The DeDeckers already knew a little about Naperville before arriving in town this week. Their sister Jane, one of 10 DeDecker siblings, created “The Spirit of the Y,” a sculpture of four children that stands outside the Fry Family YMCA building on the city’s southwest side.
As specialists in the auxiliary mechanics of sculpture – the welds, wax, molds and patina – their talents had long complemented their sister’s artistic flair. But then they suspected they had a slightly different calling.
“We’d been doing it about 25 years, and then we noticed, ‘Wow, our sculptures look really bad,'” said Jo, an art historian by training.
The treatment they apply to sculptures incorporates a vigorous power wash, a once-over with a blowtorch and a fresh application of conservator’s wax. Different from other varieties of wax, the substance bonds with the original lacquer finish on the sculptures to ward off fresh damage.
The siblings’ fee for the service usually runs between $150 and $200 for each sculpture. Jo considers it money well-spent, pointing out that the process can prevent the need for a piece to have its patina redone – which is expensive and changes the look of a sculpture.
“The city is the people, and it’s their investment,” she said. “Down the road, (the sculptures) will become invaluable.”
David finds the endeavor satisfying.
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“It’s fun to see art work come back to life,” he said.
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