Atascadero, San Luis Obispo County,
California, USA
The figures flanking the four quadrants of the original Administrative Building of the former Atascadero Colony, and now the eponymous City Hall, had four severely decayed figures, originally cast from a single mold. The cast stone fountain restoration worked to reverse decay and previous failed repair work. This involved reproducing elements of the cast stone.
There were numerous signs of previous repairs that needed to be attended to, also clearly related to the internal decay or ‘iron-jacking’ taking place in the core of each figure. And while there was enough original sculptural fabric to allow molding and reproduction of the Mermaid figures, the Birds were another level of challenge, as all original figure extension detailing (heads, wingtips, etc.) was missing. Luckily, we were able to connect with two different local residents, who graciously allowed us to make rubber molds from their privately-owned copies of the Birds and Turtles. It is always a bonus when missing historic material is discovered as a reference for accurate reproduction.
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