Concrete as a creative medium helps the industry grow

Source: CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION MAGAZINE
Publication date: 2006-04-01

By Jeanne Fields and Joe Nasvik

To see a list of sponsors for Artistry in Concrete, click here.

The 2006 World of Concrete was the biggest and best ever. More than 80,000 people attended the show, the exhibit area was 1.3 million square feet, and more than 23,000 enrolled for educational seminars. World of Concrete 2006 was even featured on “CBS News Sunday Morning” hosted by Charles Osgood.

In its fourth year, the Artistry in Decorative Concrete Demos continued to profile the work of contractors who do exceptionally creative work. All presenters showcased the type of decorative work they install in their local areas. The Artistry Demo also gave them an opportunity to develop ideas that appeal to a specialized clientele with unique tastes and budget, and it allowed the artists to push their own limits. Almost everyone involved in the Artistry Demo comes from other industries or uses ideas established in other areas to change how we look at concrete. The combination of installing work correctly, understanding the intricacy of decorative materials, and inspiration from outside sources is part of the reason that the decorative concrete industry is growing so fast. Here's what show attendees saw this year.

Over the four years of Artistry in Decorative Concrete at the World of Concrete more than 46 contractors have presented cutting-edge demonstrations, illustrating new directions for decorative concrete work.

Cardone began his concrete career as a young boy working with his father, a concrete flatwork contractor, and continued through high school. At 19, he started his own company. When he learned what a competitive business flatwork was, he turned to renovation work in Manhattan, where a client asked him to install a stone counter-top. Cardone persuaded him to try concrete, promising to replace it if the client wasn't satisfied. His company soon grew into a full-fledged decorative contractor. Those who lived through 9/11 in New York City experienced life-changing emotions, and Cardone's work at the Artistry Demo reflected that. His tribute was a complicated mix of stencils, acetone-based dyes, 100% solid epoxies, color-shift metallic powders sandwiched between layers of epoxy, overlay cement, and metal leaf. Because of the low ambient temperatures, he tented and heated his work in order to set the epoxies. With volunteer help (his wife Janine and employee Thomas Iazetta) he troweled, painted, rolled, used a turkey baster, and sprayed with a high-volume low-pressure (HVLP) sprayer to complete the work.

Dominick Cardone's work is a complicated mix of decorative materials made with stencils, solvent dyes, epoxies, color-shift metallic powders, overlay cement, and metal leaf.

Cooper started his contracting business 10 years ago, adding diamond polishing to his list of decorative techniques about 2 years ago. He positions his company as technical and creative—doing what the average contractor can't. He saw the Artistry Demo as an opportunity to experiment with new ideas in materials and methods. He divided his 10x10-foot slab in half, polishing one side about 1/16 inch deeper than the other to expose aggregate in the concrete. After diamond polishing the concrete to a 3000-grit finish, he applied self-adhesive and liquid-resist stencils to achieve both positive and negative images. He did a light sand-blasted profile through stencils at one location to show the effect of sand-blast profiling on polished concrete, and stenciled patterning on the rest of it, using an earth-colored chemical stain formulated for use over polished concrete. The finished work made it easy to imagine the possibilities.

Bill Cooper brought together diamond polished concrete, intricate stenciling, chemical staining, and light sandblasting.

The Coyles are partners in life and in business, and they work with a whimsical style. They created a campfire scene, complete with marshmallows on sticks made from a white countertop mix. For Tim, becoming a decorative concrete contractor followed 23 years of work with “plain gray” concrete. Tim says that the work was worthwhile but soulless; he wanted to express more personal creativity. As with many other presenters, the Coyles started their work with an application of overlay cement skim coat. They then engraved free-form leaf shapes using an angle grinder with a diamond blade, followed by chemically staining the slab and leaves. The leaves received several applications of stain to highlight. Colors included amber, reddish brown, terra cotta, black, and green. The Coyles also created a bench using 5-gallon bucket “forms” to cast the tree-stump legs. The bench top was made with a countertop mix incorporating glass aggregates and a geode embedded into a corner to add interest. They created the campfire pit and logs using vertical overlay cement.

Tim and Kelly Coyle created a whimsical campfire scene complete with a bench with tree stump legs, and concrete marshmallows.

Many decorative concrete contractors come from other walks of life. Rick Fischer began his career in automotive restoration and custom painting. He thought that some of the techniques he had learned could be applied to decorative concrete, and in 1993 he started his own company. Currently he also teaches workshops and helps manufacturers with training needs. At the Artistry Demo, Fischer, inspired by a Navajo rug, constructed an intricately layered pattern using stencils, thin trowel-down colored overlays, and water-based stains. To complete his work and to bring the colors together, he applied a patina with dyes in an acrylic sealer.

Rick Fischer constructed an intricate tapestry pattern with stencils and applied thin, trowel-down colored overlay cements and water-based stains.

As a cleaning contractor, Lucius received calls to maintain chemically stained concrete floors. He became intrigued with decorative concrete and eventually started a decorative concrete business with his two sons. They offer yearly maintenance contracts as a way to separate themselves from the competition. They also create decorative floors, countertops in restaurants and bars, and concrete furniture. One of their floors is featured in an art gallery. At the Artistry Demo, Lucius formed and cast a coffee table and an Adirondack chair using a manufactured concrete countertop mix. He reinforced his work with ½-inch rebar and carbon fiber reinforcement. On the next day he polished his work and applied chemical stain, using ironite to accentuate the pattern in some areas. He completed his work with a solvent acrylic sealer and beeswax.

Bob Lucius cast a countertop and chair with a countertop mix and carbon fiber reinforcement. He colored his work with chemical stains and ironite, and sealed it with acrylic sealers and beeswax.

Concrete work started as a hobby for McBroom and became a passion when she started her own decorative concrete business. Her first project was her own home, where she ripped out all the carpet and tile to install stained concrete floors. Now, after three years of contracting decorative concrete, she's expanded her business to include slabs and foundations. In 2007 she plans to start a company to build insulating concrete form houses, offering owners a “one-stop shop” for all their concrete needs. For her demo, McBroom applied custom stencils (cut in circular patterns after a Kandinsky painting) over a light-colored slab and applied a gray skim coat of overlay cement. She added layers of solvent-based dyes to provide subtle colors and water-based stains applied with an HVLP sprayer to show dynamic colors. She placed torn paper as a resist in some areas to create ragged edges. An application of chemical stain at the end provided additional accents.

Modeled after a Kandinsky painting, Hilary McBroom custom-made circular stencils, adding color with solvent-based dyes built up in layers, chemical stain, and water-based stains sprayed with an HVLP sprayer.

CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION magazine has credited Miller as the person who most influenced the variability that chemical stains now offer. Before Miller, specifiers tended to expect monochromatic, flat color representations. Today, Miller and his partner Kelly Burnham (a presenter at the 2003 Artistry Demo) advocate using concrete as an artistic medium the way that other artists would paint on canvas. To illustrate this point, at the Artistry Demo Miller applied colored overlay cements to canvas. On a recent trip to Australia he became fascinated with Aboriginal art and made this his subject, applying colored overlay cements with margin trowels, squeeze bottles, and putty knives. His first step was a thin trowel-down application of black overlay cement. Then he laid out a grid to transfer his ideas from sketches. After applying several colored overlay cements, he diamond-polished the work with a hand-held planetary grinder. The final result was a flat, lustrous finish.

Mike Miller focused on concrete as an art form, using colored overlay cement to recreate Aboriginal art and diamond-polishing the hard overlay cement to produce a smooth, lustrous finish.

As a boy Moran worked in his father's taxidermy business, including making fiberglass fish. This and his early masonry experience contributed to his work for the Natural History Museum and his creation of animals and boulders for the Smithsonian. He is an accomplished artist, painting in oil and casting in bronze. For Moran, concrete is another medium that can be used for creative artistry. For his demo, Moran built a picture frame around the outside of his slab, raising the elevation about 3 inches so that water could be poured over the finished product to make a reflecting pool. Work started with a skim-coat application of colored overlay cement troweled on the slab and sprayed on the picture frame. His design featured a map of the Florida Keys and the Gulf of Mexico, with birds and fish. He used chemical- and water-based stains to provide color.

Ed Moran's work features overlay cements to portray thematic scenes of Caribbean maps and fish and waterfowl.

Navarro brings a wide background of intercultural and business experiences to her work. She has worked as an ice cream cake sculptor, a creator of window displays, and a faux painter. When she started her company, her intent was to teach faux painting techniques, but she became interested in overlay cement and added the medium along with chemical stains to her repertoire. For her demo, Navarro applied micro-overlay cement in several layers to create texture and interest over drywall attached to a wood frame. With overlay cement she constructed a niche into the wall along with vines, twigs, and leaves. Adding color with chemical stain brought all the elements together and gave an aged appearance to her work. On the floor slab she applied overlay cement toppings and hand-carved cobblestone paving patterns.

Working over drywall, Keren Navarro installed a niche and applied several coats of thin overlay cement and chemical stains to enhance the design and to provide the color.

Schrunk is a professional artist and craftsman interested in lustrous materials and how light reflects off them. One of his clients is the Steinway Piano Company. He is one of only a few to have been asked to do the highest level of inlay woodwork on more than one piano for Stein-way and is listed on their Web site. While doing inlay work he began to notice how light reflects off wood grain patterns, which led him to wonder about patterning concrete in a way that would reflect light. He currently has a patent pending for the patterning effect that comes from reflected light and its basic shift when it moves across the surface of an object. For the Artistry Demo, Schrunk teamed up with Lockwood, an experienced decorative concrete contractor. Lockwood is currently marketing Schrunk's system to DOTs in the northeast region of the country. Together, they designed a vertical panel to illustrate the concept, using self-consolidating concrete (SCC) to fill the form. The following day they applied water-based stains to add color to their work.

Schrunk and Lockwood worked together to construct a patterned formliner wall, which they colored with water-based stains. As the light moves and changes, the planes of the pattern cause the work to reflect the shapes and color differently.

Seaboch grew up in the decorative concrete industry, having spent 18 years working with concrete. He learned his craft from a company that specialized in decorative resurfacing. Five years ago he decided to start his own company, specializing in custom residential work. His company installs concrete showers and precast countertops, stairways, fireplaces, windowsills, and moldings. Seaboch decided to make a decorative concrete shower stall for his demo because such stalls are becoming more popular. Starting with a wood frame wall and a cement-based backer board, he applied several thin applications of overlay cement. In a normal application he would install a waterproof membrane between the overlay and the cement board. He outlined the wall design with reinforced tape and used water-based stains to pattern and color his work. Afterwards he sanded the wall lightly and applied a waterproof sealer. Seaboch also uses stencils to add patterning to shower stalls.

To create a shower stall, Todd Seaboch applied several thin applications of overlay cement over cement-based backer board, colored it with water-based stains, and sealed with urethanes for a waterproof, easy-to-maintain finish.

Susoev farmed in California's Central Valley and worked at a variety of construction jobs for 10 years—always doing artwork on the side. Eight years ago, a friend gave him some decorative concrete materials to play with, and that became a career-changing moment. He quit his job, attended several decorative concrete classes, and 7 months later opened his own business. For his demo, Susoev created Mardi Gras masks. He started with a trowel-down application of white overlay cement. Using 1/8-and ½-inch-wide masking tape, he worked out his design. When he was satisfied with the shape, he marked it out with a pencil, removed the tape, and used a 4-inch diamond blade on an angle grinder to engrave the lines. Next, he masked out areas and used a variety of techniques and materials to color the work: solvent-based dyes, dry-pearl powders, and metallic and gold leafing. For the finishing step he applied a sealer to protect his images. Inspiration for creative expression can come from anywhere. Susoev says that the inspiration for this demo came to him while watching a food-channel presentation about sugar carvings.

Levi Susoev used masking tape to stencil the shapes then followed with solvent-based dyes, dry-pearl powders, and metallic and gold leafing.

Dominick Cardone
The Concrete Impressionist
Brooklyn, New York

Bill Cooper
CTI of the Desert
Cathedral City, California

Tim & Kelly Coyle
Coyle Design
Sorrento, Florida

Rick Fischer
Decorative Illusions
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Bob Lucius
Innovative Concrete Solutions
Ovilla, Texas

Hilary McBroom
Rennovi Concrete
Elk City, Oklahoma

Mike Miller
the concretist
Benicia, California

Ed Moran
Artistic Concrete Designs
Cudjoe Key, Florida

Keren Navarro
Twig and a Feather
East Dundee, Illinois

Tom Schrunk
Lustracon
Minneapolis

Tom Lockwood
Concrete Rock Surfaces
Bethel, Connecticut

Todd Seaboch
Concrete Craftsmen
San Diego, California

Levi Susoev
River Alloy Designs
Kerman, California