Creative metal coating | Natalie Guy
Creative metal coating by Metalier – Zen reading on the Rocks
Creative metal by Metalier has been used on a number of occasions by Auckland artist, Natalie Guy. She used Metalier’s Flexible Brass on a lamp-fitting shown by the Wallace Collection at Pah Homestead. She has also used it on a wide variety of substrates including bamboo, polystyrene and wood.
Because Metalier is “metal as art”, we were pleased to be able to support Natalie’s creative metal work when she was chosen as an artist for the recent sculpture trail at Waiheke Island in the Hauraki Gulf, Auckland, New Zealand. It is an honour to be chosen to exhibit at Sculpture on the Gulf. 34 artists were chosen from over 250 initial proposals. Natalie also sold the work so that’s fantastic too.
Reading Zen in the Rocks – About the work
Natalie entitled the work Reading Zen in the Rocks. It merges the myth of the Zen Garden and mid-century modernism. The work references the modernist sculptor Isamu Noguchi and combines two of his works. One is the 1962 Lessons of Musokokushi a bronze garden of flat-bottomed rocks. The second is the iconic Akari paper lampshades which has been replicated widely and is available very cheaply.
The rocks in Reading Zen in the Rocks have been inverted – the flat bottom skyward and the top nestling into the earth. The rocks appear to be solid bronze, but only the top element, the replica Akari are. Their shaping alludes to the concentric circles around rocks placed in a traditional raked sand garden. The lower element is created using a lightweight concrete/plastered hollow mould coated with Metalier Smoky Bronze. The materials are inverted with the lower part lightweight and humble with a creative metal coating and the top is weighty and expensive. The flattening of the Akari form which negates its practical role and adopts new possibilities would seem, the artist says, to be counter-intuitive to modernists principles. Natalie concludes that her work might, however, invite a fresh consideration of modernism’s natural lineage.
The setting for the sculpture trail is beautiful Waiheke Island – along a magical headland – in the sun, after a walk of an hour or two round the headland you can relax with a beautiful glass of Waiheke wine. What’s not to like?
Metalier is science, practice and creativity
Metalier coatings are a mixture of science, practice and creativity. You have to “feel” it as well as know practically what to do and of course without the Metalier science you don’t have a coating at all. The most creative Metalier applicators are those who have “got” the feeling and can let their art run wild. That’s one of the reasons we so like working with artists.
To find out how you can get the “feeling” or to ask questions about other things you can email us or telephone us (Mary on 021 732746 or 09376 7099).
Metalier Metal Powders | Exclusively protected
Metalier Metal Powders are specially preserved in an exclusive protective coating.
Metal powders are the main topic of this piece. It is also a bit of an unashamed brag about the quality of Metalier coatings. If that doesn’t interest you we suggest you read our blog about the Harrods escalator job. We’re still amazed at the size of that job and the sheer logistics of it.
To the point - metal powders are one of the two most important ingredients in Metalier liquid metal coatings. The other vital component is our specially formulated range of binders. Our solvent binder is only available in Aotearoa New Zealand, from us at HQ and from our authorised distributors throughout the world. This is because at the heart of its formulation is a recipe only manufactured right here in the Antipodes.
But, I digressed again, and this is a story about metal powders. The source of our powders is a highly-guarded secret, as you might imagine. They are such an important part of our process.
What actually makes our powders so special is threefold:
first is the skill with which they are produced,
second is the care with which they are packed in vacuum-sealed bags,
third is that each tiny grain of metal powder is encapsulated in a protective coating. This protective coating means that oxidization is almost totally prevented. It’s an enormous bonus for applicators and the end enjoyers of Metalier. Metal gets to be applied to a surface in almost the same colour as when it was mined from the earth. Metalier is the only company to utilize this exclusive process.
At Metalier we’re keen to retain our position at the top of the league table of decorative liquid metal coating companies. You know the saying – if you can’t be first, be the best. Well we weren’t the first and we didn’t invent the concept as so many decorative metals companies now claim (“Yawn”). But we reckon we’re right up there on the league table for a number of reasons. And one of the most important ones is simply the quality of our metal powders.
If you would like to know who invented the liquid metal concept email me and I’ll tell you. If you would like to know the source of our metal powders you could also email me and I won’t tell you. Sorry.
If you would like Metalier metal powders (along with the other ingredients) to transform something ordinary into magnificent metal then email HQ or UK or USA or India or Russia or Australia or Vietnam or fill out the form below.
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Copper brilliance | Experimentarium Denmark
Copper brilliance on magnificent staircase
Copper brilliance is seen in all its magnificence in what I can only describe as a phenomenal staircase in Denmark’s Experimentarium Science Centre in Hellerup. The Hellerup science centre is about a 15 minute drive north of Copenhagen, so is very accessible. It’s definitely added to my “must see’ list.
Designed by Danish CEBRA architecture the staircase is touted as one of the finest modern examples of a helical staircase. I have to admit that “helical” is a new word for me. It is different from a regular old spiral staircase because it doesn’t have a newel (another new word) which is a central post. This staircase happens to have rails on both sides of the staircase. That isn’t what makes it helical, however. Helical simply means spiral.
The engineering behind this copper brilliance is impressive. The staircase is built of 160 tons of steel and is clad with 10 tons of copper. Now, if only the architects had known about the lightness of Metalier’s liquid metal copper they could probably have saved at about three-quarter’s of the copper weight.
The architects were inspired partly by the science and technology focus of the Experimentarium. They were also inspired by the original building where the staircase is built. It was once o soft-drinks bottling facility for Tuborg one of Denmark’s iconic beer brewers.
While I like to use this blog mainly to tell you about things that Metalier has done and can do, sometimes you come across something that is just too good not to share. And this is one of those times. This staircase is mind-blowing and marries the exotic copper brilliance with a simple white minimalist path – the contrast is compelling.
In my book, this staircase is one of the architectural wonders of the world.
To learn more about it or more about Metalier, contact us.
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Metalier liquid metal | Champagne Gold in Harrods of London
Champagne gold is the colour of the liquid metal in Harrods
Metalier champagne gold liquid metal was chosen as part of a massive refurbishment of Harrods of London. Harrods is arguably one of the most prestigious department stores in the world. It’s certainly one of the most famous.
Champagne gold was created by Granlyn
Congratulations are due to our Metalier distributors and best mates in the UK – Craig and Alison McDonald of Granlyn Specialist Coatings. Alison worked with the contractors to come up with a special blended finish that she called Champagne Gold. We thought that was a splendid name - just right for a store that covers 90,000 sq m of space and sells luxury collections across 330 departments.
The Metalier liquid metal coating was applied to the sides of the escalators and in the bulkheads underneath – if that is the correct terminology. That was a lot of Metalier and it looked absolutely magnificent.
The company undertaking the contract was based in Hong Kong and the hard work was done in China. All the components of the escalator to seven floors were all shipped back for installation in situ. The installation was completed in October 2016 and I was lucky enough to be able to visit the store in the following week. I’m rather proud of the pictures I took. I also took a video of the escalator moving which cracked up my son – the Metalier part wasn’t moving, he said, so there was no point in a video.
I’m not taking any notice of him. Here is my video What do you think?
Did you know that there are 4 main banks of escalators in Harrods. The store attracts 15 million shoppers a year. Chances are that they’ll all go up at least one set of escalators so we reckon that about 3.75 million people per annum get to see real live actual Metalier. We think that’s amazing. What’s even more satisfying, in a way, is that they won’t know it’s Metalier. It looks like solid metal!
For more information about champagne gold or even just straight champagne contact:
Alison at Granlyn, Tim at M2 Supply in North America, or Mary at HQ or you could complete the form below: