BRADLEY SANDERS
MULTIMEDIA ARTIST/CRAFTSMAN
LOTUS FOUNTAIN
ZINC and COPPER
In Process: LEAF CONSTRUCTION
The material used here is zinc sheet; a modern replacement for the traditional hammered lead garden sculpture. 

Zinc sheet is a fairly friendly metal for hammering and shaping; with some work hardening limitations.
A dulled wide chisel is used to strike what will later be the veining.
CONTENTS:
The zinc is cut in to a disc- this one is 12" in diameter.
Two tubes are cut- one is 3/8" and one 1/4". The tubes shown are shortened for photo. The tubes will be the inside and outside of the stem socket on the leaf bottom- I find that the double walled stem socket is flexible for shaping the stems and carrying the water; but is sturdy enough to carry the heavy leaves.
The material used for the leaves, flowers, and seed pods is sheet zinc. Each leaf and petal was hand cut , shaped, and figured in repousse The stem of each is tinned copper tubing. In the pond is a circulating pump channeled through artificial rocks which contain socket into which the stems are inserted. Because of the differing heights of the stems, each socket is individually valved to adjust the flow from the center of the leaf, where the water wells up and trickles from the edge as if it was raining.
The background was to be fauxed in a mottled grey to resemble fog.
In Process: FLOWER and POD CONSTRUCTION