Concrete Art, Decorative Forms

In communities across the country, ordinary concrete walls are being overtaken by everything from slithering lizards and leaping bluefish to giant cacti and rambling freight trains. But residents aren’t apprehensive; they’re thrilled.

Rather than monstrous monoliths of flat concrete looming on the horizon, extraordinary three-dimensional creations are popping up in cities and suburbs, along highways and beaches, next to mountains and in deserts — as one-of-a-kind works of art.

Participants agree that a lot of planning goes into these massive public projects, which usually involve highways, sound barriers and retaining walls. Depending on the scope of the project, the team may consist of architects, engineers, artists, general and concrete contractors and form-makers who work with the contracting government agencies and neighboring communities.

Simple technique brings great results
Whether the project is large, small or somewhere in between, “We [artists] like to be brought in at the beginning,” says Lilli Ann Rosenberg, an artist from Jacksonville, Ore., who together with her husband, Marvin, has been working with concrete for more than 30 years. The two have been commissioned to dream up designs for such projects as skate parks, libraries, schools, playgrounds, hospitals, health clinics and housing developments.

Once the conceptual drawings have been done and the design approved, the couple use rigid insulation boards to make their decorative forms. Their technique is quick and easy, Lilli Ann says.

She draws the images and Marvin cuts them out. They glue whole boards or pieces together for extra dimension and use a soldering iron to create textures and patterns. Next, the Rosenbergs take the carved panels to the site, where they glue or screw the carved insulation panels to the plywood forms before the concrete is poured.

Lilli Ann says they first coat the carvings with liquid soap for easier removal. “When the concrete is totally cured, in the next day or so, we pull out the foam. Sometimes we have to power wash the design to get out all the little pieces.”

It’s a fast way to make a flat, boring wall into something very attractive, Marvin says. And as soon as one job is done, he adds, there’s another one waiting. “We’re constantly getting business.”