Classic Cadillac lives in sculpture

Sculptor Bernard Corman of Jackson stands next to CaddyCorner, the piece of art he created for a client in the Mideast nation of Kuwait. JACKSON — It may not be the solid gold Cadillac seen in the 1956 movie starring Judy Holliday and Paul Douglas, but this bronze classic, vintage 1959 Cadillac is sure to excite the fancy of everyone who will view it in the future.

"I had been thinking about that movie, 'The Solid Gold Cadillac,' in relation to this piece," said automotive sculptor Bernard Corman, of Jackson. "But it would be quite expensive to cast the vehicle in gold."

About 18 months ago Corman received a commission to enlarge one of his pieces, a tabletop size 1959 Cadillac sculpture, up to life-size proportions for a wealthy Kuwaiti businessman and collector, who, he said, wished to remain anonymous.

Corman makes unusual and imaginative automotive sculptures using the classic cars of the 1950s as the inspiration for his work, which marry the mechanical to the organic, and often the bombastic to the comical.

Currently, he is putting the finishing touches on a project he calls CaddyCorner — a life-size version of the miniature Cadillac.

The sculpture has taken more than a year to complete and is monumental in size and also in audacity, he said.

CaddyCorner, one of Corman's signature pieces, is a reinterpretation of a 1959 Cadillac, one of the largest and longest of the classic American automobiles. The work features styling elements such as an egg-crate front grill, and what may be the most recognizable tail fins of all time.

In Corman's cartoon-style interpretation, the 1959 Cadillac is bent 90 degrees, as if it were going around a corner.

"My original CaddyCorner was tabletopsize," said Corman.

At Laran Bronze, a fine-arts foundry in Chester, Pa., the smaller sculpture was effectively enlarged to a life-size version, with the finished bronze sculpture comprising 18 feet along the outer curve and weighing in at more than 4,000 pounds, including the steel substructure.

Corman said that about two years ago, he sold two small pieces to his client from Kuwait.

"One," said Corman, "was a small version of the CaddyCorner, which was like the one that is being enlarged, and the second was a sculpture of a car that turned into a lady's rear end, which is called 'Big Ass Buick.' "

He said that at the time, he was working for another local sculptor, Brian Hanlon, who creates life-size sculptures.

"Working with Hanlon, I became familiar with life-size figurative sculptures," Corman said. "I spoke with the client [in Kuwait], and he suggested a larger piece, a life-size automobile. [For me this] was really cool."

Corman said he became excited and enthusiastic when the suggestion was made.

"That is an awesome undertaking," he said. The process used to create the final product was quite complicated. It involved a computerized scanning of every detail in the original.

Next, a much larger version was carved out of a stiff foam material, using a computer-controlled milling machine. This new positive image was then sanded, smoothed and detailed in preparation for the molding and casting process.

"Part of this project was produced using sand molds," Corman explained. "The other way in which cast metal is created is a bit more complicated. Usually the sculptor makes a clay mold."

Corman said here, liquid castable rubber is coated and used as a mold. That mold is sloshed with hot wax, and the wax is pulled out of the mold to produce a wax pattern identical to the original.

The sculptor said wax pipes, also known as gates, are then attached, and slurry (a form of ceramic) is dipped in sand and allowed to dry. That process is repeated about a dozen times until a shell is built up, he said.

"At this point it is actually referred to as grade ware and is now similar to real ceramic," said Corman. "You put that in the oven and then fire it, melting away the wax, and the ceramic becomes very hard."

That is what the sculptor pours the molten metal into, he said.

Traditionally, bronze is what is poured into the mold, but people also cast aluminum or brass, the sculptor said.

Video of the processes can be found in the blog area of Corman's Internet website at www.bernardcorman.com.

In reviewing the process, Corman said some actual parts from a 1959 Cadillac were molded to create the front grill and the iconic tail fins in order to provide a level of detail and accuracy. He said the sculpture was cast in many pieces, about 50 in all, which were then welded together to create the entire work of art.

The metal then required careful finishing in which air and hand tools, grinders, were used to meticulously polish the surface of the bronze. This created the gleaming, smooth finish that attracts the eye and highlights the wonder of the life-size Caddy- Corner.

In a final step, Corman designed and installed a hidden seating area in the rear of the sculpture, a secret compartment that adds to his whimsical tribute to one of the classic automobiles of all time.

Corman began sculpting miniature custom hot rods out of clay during his adolescence and has been sculpting and casting pieces that reflect his special take on things ever since.

After attending the Art Institute of Chicago, Corman learned the lost wax process in which bronze is cast from an artist's sculpture.

Corman is presently on staff at the Johnson Atelier in New Jersey, where he has honed many of his technical skills, while exploring the ideas that fuse his fondness for the surreal with his love of the American car styling from the 1950s.

Corman's creations are in many private collections, including those of Elton John, Stephen King and members of the band Blondie.

Corman's sculptures are available for purchase through Paypal.com.