Outdoor Mounting of Wooden Sculpture

What's the scale of this wondrous thing? Overall height? thickness of legs? approx. total weight?

Any sign of decay or infestation? How's the wood been treated (apart from the obvious TLC)?

Not that I can give much of an answer, but I think anyone who can would need to know these things.

The wood was Geen Oak, but that was about 5 years ago, so it's no longer 'green' . No treatment on the oak and it's been outside for about a year (good sound timber).
I can't take any measurements as it's in a gallery at the moment.

The overall height is about 4' and the feet are about 30x25mm at the ends.

It's not heavy you can lift/carry it with one hand, but two is more comfortable.

My main worry is safety and damage...it won't be in an area open to the general public 24/7.

I want it to be enjoyed by people, so I don't mind wear and tear, but I don't want it fall over and impale a toddler with it's antlers .

There is obviously enough leverage on an antler to allow it to be wrenched off by a determined adolescent....I'm hoping it will be more Mums with younger kids who will be petting him.

I tested it on the kids nextdoor but one (I wanted to make sure it wasn't scarey) the little girl patted him, the slightly older ones wanted to see if he had genitalia!
(Actually 'DH07' is carved in that region!... _{No it's no made by De Havilland})

Del

(Technically it will be on 'permanent Loan' that way I'll have control of any repair work...I envisage maybe replacing the antlers with little stubby ones if they don't survive ... like this one.

WTF is Kris doing here?

Do you know if you'll be responsible for the installation (in terms of public liability)? My ex. is an artist. Up 'til now, her work has been covered by the college & the various galleries where she's exhibited, but she wants to start going alone, and is in the process of sorting out insurance.

insurance! Arrggh I just don't don't want to go there...As far as I'm concerned it will be down to the Gibberd Garden to ensure the safety of their visitors. (Maybe I'll check their website...perhaps it's affiliated to the National Trust or some-such)

The whole process has been verbal so far...last year I showed Mrs Deer (the smaller one) and they wanted it...I explained it belonged to Mrs Cat (a Birthday present) and they asked me if I'd do them one...so I s'pose it was a commission (albeit a freebie).
If they don't want the sculpture I'll happily have it in my garden...
They did say 'We get a lot of unsuitable donations'.
I'm sure some people will throw their hands up in horror at such an attitide...but where do you draw the line?

I s'pose I should get something in writing at some point to state it's on permanent loan...

Maybe I'm naive, lazy or sloppy...but life's too short for too much bureaucracy and lawyers/insurance salesmen.

Del

If I were doing this, a "seat-of-the-pants" would be an 8mm rod 100mm deep in each leg with the construction adhesive you mentioned. T'other end in a 150mm diameter, 300mm deep concrete anchor, with about 150mm of rod in the concrete. I'd soak about 40mm of the feet in a preservative (whatever is legal there).

Cheers...Screwfix do do 8mm threaded SS rod too, I'll have to see how much wood there is on the legs before the final decision...

It's going to be a bit nerve wracking trying to drill up the legs (ouch).

Is an anaesthetic in order? (I'm thinking maybe a few beers before I start)

I was a bit unsure how deep to go with the concrete... It was a case of 100mm obviously not deep enough... 1000 mm too deep!
300mm should be easy to do and maybe a bit more if it's soft ground.

(I've got some nice thin coulourless preservative, If I soak it upto the leg joints it should look ok.)

Ta for the input
Del (I shall pass your name onto the insurace companies Lawyers)

As for the concrete:

The standard for a self standing cloths line base is 8" (200mm) diameter 20" (508mm)deap and wider at the base.

This takes about 1 1/ bags of quickpost I would do this at both the front and back legs.

Never put wood on concrete, it will absorb moisture. Either use a membrane or use a metal support imbedded in the concrete. A 'J' bolt idea would work.

Cheers... good info.

Del

Rather than forming loops in the protruding rods, it would be easier (& I think it would hold better) if you used 50mm dia. ss 'washers' (could be just square plates) & nuts.

Ah, yes nuts and washers is nice an professional ...I'll see if they stock 'em...
(If not bending is cheap)

Del

I've seen this sort of thing used in (not-very-expensive) furniture:

Could fill all gaps with exterior grade Unibond & fit an oak plug to cover up the slot. Reckon the leg would break before this came out!

... just an idea.

[Edit: Please note: I'm sweating blood here to get my 25%!]

I think the best method of securing the rod in the legs would be Epoxy glue.

Just a short word of caution. Oak species contain mineral acids that will accelerate the corrosion of some metals that are brought into contact with it, mild steels being particularly poor performers on this account. It might be worth checking on the compatibility of oak with stainless steels before committing one's self.

Ta..will do.

You might think of sinking a little treated xXx (4x4 or 6x6 or so) into a post hole, put a slope on the top of it with a plane to get some water to run off, then mount your 'trophy' to it with fairly long 'high quality' stainless wood screws.

the xXx could be concreted in, but not necessarially if it is trated for 'earth contact'. At least it will last several years. The stainless screws I would suggest are the kind you want to build a boat with, especially for salt water. More expensive but you won't have an issue with rust or the acids from the oak leaching and eating them up quickly. They also need to go several inches into the 'mounting' xXx at an angle (like toenailing)

Oh well, enough of looking for my part of your commission! :)

Cheers...

However I do it, I'll try and allow some slope for run off .

Nice sculpture Del.

I'd be inclined to drill the feet to about 100mm with a 6 or 7mm dia bit and craft some brass sleeves about 30mm long (that look like hoofs) to stop the wood splitting, then screw in some big eyes! When you pour the concrete, pass a small length of rue bar through the eyes to give it that extra hold!

Cheers, nice pic...

Unfortunately I don't have any real metal working facilities. But I could knock up a brass or copper washer just to keep it off the wet ground a tad.

I'm wary of the splitting issue (oak does spilt quite easilly) so I shall take it easy, do the try outs and experiment with adhesives.
We all seem to agree that about 100mm into the wood should do the trick.

It's a week or two away yet... I get 'him' back from the exhibition next Tues...and then install him a week after that.

(At least him and 'Mrs Deer' will have one last week together in the garden...sniff.... Maybe I'll have to make a little fawn for next year... What a softy old Cat I am )

Del

How about copper water pipe?

Yup...I shall try it out.

Greetings, Del,

If I were to secure the stag to a base, I don't think I would weaken the lower legs by drilling into them to insert bolts (or whatever). May I suggest that you consider leaving the legs as they are, and placing them inside short tubes (resembling hooves?) that are embedded in the surface. Then secure the sculpture via a cable or cables between the legs to the surface.

The sculpture looks to me to be far too fragile to be able to withstand very much abuse by mischievous gremlins. Also, if those are holes in the back, they present as traps for fingers, if a child should mount, insert finger(s), then fall off.

Hi, thanks for the input.
It's surprisingly strong, the back leg joints are jointed, dowelled and glued, not just lapped.

Good point about the holes...maybe we can harvest the fingers for making hot dogs?.... _{(ouch bad joke)}

Seriously it's one of those difficult issues....it's not designed to be 'played on' , but I recognise that it will get 'petted' and of course some kids are bound to want to sit on it...I mean I've always wanted to climb onto the Lions at Trafalgar Square (but they are rather high up...) There is a sculpture in the garden 'City' by Gerda Rubinstein (So I'll be in rather famous company!) which has some very spiky holes in it...mind it's up on a plinth, it looks a bit like a torture device.

We have quite a bit of public art in Harlow, a small amount has been vandalised over the years notably this piece which had the child's head knocked off . It has been restored and is now safely indoors, but still visible from outdoors.

There is a huge potential debate about when and where safety responsibility resides with the individual.

There is of course an interesting history to holes in sculpture, Hepworth vs Moore... who did it first? Probably Hepworth but the chauvinism of the day favoured the man Henry Moore.
Anyhow, holes work in many ways and although I could fill 'em with a contrasting timber they add to the humour and tactile quality of the piece (of course I realise a stag doesn't have 'spots' but that's the difference between art and life...it's not representational more 'essence of deer'.)

Sorry I'm rambling on and getting pretentious

Bottom line is, I'd hate any child to be injured by it...

Del

I glaze over and couldn't cognate well much more.

My judgement is that is not an outdoor piece, but an indoor sculpture.

- It is made of wood.

Outdoor sculptures are made of bronze, or stone.

There are exceptions, such as the Totem Pole, but you are aware of the issues enough to hopefully see why I would be firm.

I would not drill up inside each leg, because this is very likely parallel to the structure of the wood, to its grain, and might cause cracking. It might be better to clamp the legs between flat stainless steel bars and fix them with screws and nuts. Against rot I would propose to lift the whole thing a bit from ground to have the rain flowing easily to the ground as well air draft acessing the gap. Finally I would vote against protecting the wood with paint but would recommend to use varnish or colourless oil coating. This about twice per year during the first till second year, then less often. I don't know how big your beast is but I think a bottle of 1l might be enough and the wood will keep its natural appearance, beside the fact that varnish is a mild protection and very natural.

If this art piece is to be accessed by children, I would make every attempt to child

proof it. Soften the tips of the antlers or glue on a round object such as small

wooden balls. If an overly energetic child should knock it over, I would hate to see a

metal stake protruding out of the ground. lashing it down with SS cable may work,

keeping in mind that if a major repair need arises, you may want the option to remove

from site to effect repairs.

Also as the wood weathers the possibility of splinters may need to be addressed.

I would finish the wood using a good polyurethane with UV inhibitors. To penetrate

end grain during first coat thin polyurethane with 25% solvent.

Clean or scrub mold and mildew from wood surface with a non clorinated

cleaner containing sodium precarbonate and let dry for a few days before applying

finish. Good luck Del