Sculptor crafts $125k extinct bird creation out of scrap metal

Jo McKenzie-McLean 05:15, Sep 16 2019

Wanaka artist Luke Wilson created the sculpture of two extinct birds in combat to show the flight of our native animals.

A Kiwi artist has resurrected two extinct native birds using cutlery, hot water cylinders and horse shoes.

Luke Wilson's Haast Eagle Vs Moa took more than two years to make using scrap metal – a skill he discovered while working at Wanaka recycling and reuse shop Wastebusters.

"I'd been working at Wastebusters processing their metal recycling for about a year and realised I had a knack for putting things together with odds and ends. It got me wanting to work with material that has a story behind each piece that comes in."

Wanaka-based artist Luke Wilson, 31, will exhibit his giant scrap metal sculpture of a Haast eagle and moa at a St Andrew's College fundraiser in Christchurch on September 20 alongside several other artists.

The 31-year-old's engineering background has helped produce the sculptures, as has late nights, copious amounts of coffee, a No.8 wire mentality and a passion to portray the world's natural beauty in his art while raising awareness about the plight of native birds.

"I work up a mountain and there is kea up there. Their population is declining and they are really special birds."

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This Hungarian artist is making the world’s biggest bird sculpture

6 October 2016 · Hungary

 

Last month we told you about Hungarian sculptor Gábor Szőke, who has been commissioned to create the world's largest bird sculpture for the Atlanta Falcons' new stadium — now take a sneak peek at what the finished work will look like.

The huge falcon sculpture — set to measure 12.5 metres in height and 20 metres wide — will be created in the sculptor's studio in Budapest and transported in containers to the plaza at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The base will be made of concrete, while the the bird will stand on a bronze football and be comprised of stainless steel elements.

“It is a brutally inspiring job, but an extraordinary responsibility too, the pressure on me has been increasing since the beginning,” Szőke said of the project.

The new stadium, which is due to open in 2017, will be home to the Atlanta Falcons American football team and the Atlanta United Football (soccer) Club.

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Giant bird comes home to roost at quay

Stephen BevisDecember 16, 2015, 5:00 am

Laurel Nannup’s giant bird in a boat is the latest artwork to be installed at Elizabeth Quay.

First Contact is inspired by the Noongar people’s first visions of European settlers, whose distant sailing ships looking like floating birds bearing the white-faced spirits of their ancestors.

The final piece of Elizabeth Quay’s $4 million public-art puzzle, Christian de Vietri's 29m-tall Spanda, which has been nicknamed the Big Paperclip, will be completed early next month before the $440 million waterfront precinct opens.

Nannup, 72, a respected Noongar artist, usually creates woodcut prints and etchings which depict scenes of her childhood as a member of the Stolen Generation.

For the 5m tall First Contact, she worked with arts organisation Form to bring the polished aluminium sculpture to life at William’s Landing on the south-west corner of Elizabeth Quay.

She visited the Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority site yesterday as the final touches were put on the $850,000 artwork, which will be spectacularly lit at night.

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Impressed by Kerala bird sculpture, officials want similar in Dubai

By Indo Asian News Service | IANS – Sun, Nov 29, 2015

Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 29 (IANS) Impressed by the 70-feet tall bird sculpture here that attracts numerous visitors, a visiting top Dubai Tourism official said he wants to build a similar structure of the national bird of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) - a falcon - in Dubai.

Majid Al Marri, director stakeholder relations, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce, his team and Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Saturday conducted an hour-long helicopter tour of the capital city.

He said he was amazed by the imposing Jatayu Nature Park, spread across an area of 65 acres, which houses the sculpture of the mythical bird Jatayu.

Marri later told IANS that they wish to built a similar structure - in Dubai - of the Falcon which is their national bird.

"A similar structure based on the falcon - our national bird - would be good in Dubai. We are returning in February and by then we will have more pictures of this," said Marri.

Award-winning filmmaker and sculptor Rajiv Anchal started working on the project a decade back and is likely to finish it by early next year.

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Amazing Giant Bird Sculpture Can Realistically Flap its Wings

Brooklyn artist and sculptor Tim Laursen created an incredible and enormous giant bird sculpture that uses a solar-powered motor to realistically flap its wings. Jen Markham explains.

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