Marton Varo's imposing twin angels emerge dramatically from the
facade of the Bass Performance Hall to herald the performing arts.
Approximately forty-eight feet tall, the angels are several times
larger than life. Of the same limestone as the building, they are
inseparable from it. These glorious beings are depicted just at the
moment they are touching Earth, gliding on the last little bit of
lift from their extended wings. Each angel hovers above the street,
weightless and serene in flowing garments. Each one leans her
torso, arms, and head slightly away from the background wall to
play a golden trumpet high above the street. With a gesture that
reinforces the trumpeting, each angel raises an arm toward the sky.
The angels have quickly become symbols of Fort Worth as valid and
commanding as the city's "cowtown" heritage.
The carving and installation of such large high-relief
sculptures was a daunting artistic and technical challenge. Varo
carved three sets of smaller angels in preparation for work on the
actual sculptures.Limestone for the works was quarried near Austin,
Texas, and transported to Irvine, California, where Varo carved the
works in large numbered blocks. The delicate carving of the wings
was done in Fort Worth.
Engineers from Curtain Wall Design calculated the exact
dimensions needed for each block and designed lifting devices for
each. A crew of ironworkers and stonemasons installed the angels
under Varo's supervision. Steel plates were embedded in the
concrete walls to support the angels, and each carved block is
permanently attached to a corresponding plate so that no block
rests on the one below. This design transfers the weight of the
sculpture to thebuilding.
Informal photographs by Varo and others record the creation of
the angels from quarrying of the limestone through the initial
carving of the blocks. Rodger Mallison recorded the installation
process almost daily. The result is a superb photographic chronicle
of a major artistic project.
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