Roy Leadbeater's Mannequins was commissioned by the Cambridge Group, a Toronto company, for the Deerfoot Shopping Centre in Calgary in 1981. Fabricated at Leadbeater's Sculpcast Foundry in Edmonton, it was installed in the mall in 1983. Following recent renovations and restructuring of the mall, Mannequins was donated to the City of Calgary so it could be exhibited in a new home, and our team was hired to treat the sculpture to ready it for display.
Cast entirely of bronze, Mannequins combines bright metal with textured surfaces in high contrast. Portions of the sculpture's patina had been lost over the years, polished surfaces were heavily tarnished, and the central figure's tie was broken and detached. Our objectives were to clean the sculpture overall, repair damaged components, and protect the metal from future degradation. Treatment involved mechanical, aqueous, and solvent cleaning to remove soiling, polishing residues, surface corrosion, and aged or failed coatings; the various patinas were assessed, evened, and renewed where necessary; bright metal surfaces were polished to remove tarnish and scratching; and new protective coatings were applied overall to slow future soiling, tarnish, and corrosion.
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