Sculptor transforms Boral concrete
A unique collaboration between Boral's Innovation Factory and a Sydney artist is on display at the Sculpture by the Sea exhibition. Boral partnered with James Gardiner for his contribution, Shard 4, made with a unique black concrete.
Sculpture by the Sea is the largest annual exhibition of its kind in the world and features more than 100 sculptures by artists from around the world along the 1.2-kilometre Bondi to Tamarama coastal walk.
Boral has partnered with artist and inventor James Gardiner for his contribution to this year’s Sculpture by the Sea exhibition in Sydney.
Sculpture by the Sea is the largest annual exhibition of its kind in the world and features more than 100 sculptures by artists from around the world along the 1.2-kilometre Bondi to Tamarama coastal walk.
A pioneer in 3D printing for the construction industry, James asked our Innovation Factory team to create a novel black concrete with a striking aesthetic for his Shard 4 sculpture that was inspired by natural phenomena such as eroded rock formations and the structure of bones, trees and cities. The Innovation Factory is Boral’s inhouse centre of excellence and research and development responsible for developing advanced cement and concrete solutions for our customers.
James’ vision included cutting his sculpture with an angle grinder, an important process that required all aggregates to be as dark as possible to match the external surface. To meet the challenge, the Innovation Factory’s Technical Research and Development Lab Supervisor Paul Smyth developed an idea to use coal fines in place of traditional aggregates to achieve the black look, which ensured that once cut into there would not be any large pieces of quartz or other light coloured and reflective materials visible.
“The reason I chose Boral to collaborate with on the project was because I had previously worked with Boral R&D as an inventor on a couple of challenging projects,” James said. “I knew that the team had the right expertise to develop a super black concrete.
“Working with the team was a real pleasure, they were really accommodating, always offered great solutions and we were able to quickly after a few iterations to develop the perfect material for this challenging project.
“I wanted to use concrete for this project because it is a highly durable material, which could satisfy one of the 20-plus year longevity requirements of Sculpture by the Sea. It is also perfect for creating the really delicate details through casting with 3D printed moulds. Through this I was able to push the use of concrete into an area which it is rarely used – finely crafted and detailed sculpture.”
The unique concrete mix using coal fines achieved the strength requirements within seven days, despite excluding traditional aggregates. This also helped to reduce the weight of the sculpture.
The free Sculpture by the Sea event is on until November 4, 2018.
Learn more about James at Arthouse Gallery and view the process of making Shard 4 on Instagram
Photography by Ben Guthrie