Oshkosh, Wis. – One of the most famous images in the world, The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo Buonarroti, was painted by Gerri Buteyn of Brandon (Wis.) and her son, an artist who attended the Institute of Art (Schaumburg), for the new Renaissance Center in Oshkosh, home to Fox Valley Plastic Surgery.
The work commenced June 5th was completed by June 26th.
Painting the fresco technique in an architectural environment presented some challenges. The Renaissance Center dome is 26 feet high. Crews completing the building work during the day, so the artists must paint at night and on the weekends. Construction schedules require the painting to be completed in three weeks, so the art medium will be acrylic, which dries much quicker than oil (which takes up to six months to dry).
“Specialty acrylics from the Netherlands, which will work well with the surface of the dome at the Center, will best help us to recreate the fresco look,” states Buteyn.
Buteyn and her son painted just inches from the plaster dome, much like Michelangelo did 500 years ago. Buteyn estimates the painting took nearly 200 hours to create (it took nearly 5 years for Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel).
A satin varnish was painted over the finished masterpiece, which will protect it from UV and pollution damage.
Oshkosh, WI (920) 233-1540