LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) -- Local sculptor William Duffy is one step closer to realizing a dream.
Duffy, who has been a part of the fabric of Louisville’s art scene for over four decades, recently had an opportunity to do something he hadn’t yet done when he was awarded the Bill Fischer Award for Visual Artists in January.
The $5,000 prize allowed Duffy to enlarge an original work with the help of Madison Robots, a robotics-based fine art fabrication, design and prototyping company in Madison, Wisconsin.
The original sculpture being enlarged, “Nocturnal Care,” stands 10 inches tall and depicts a father cradling a child in a posture of care and protection.
“It depicts a subject that isn’t often covered in art and that is a father and its child. You always see these mother and child pieces and I just thought, ‘You know it would be nice to do a piece, sort of a universal piece, that depicts fathers--or daddies--with their children,’” Duffy said. “When you look at this piece you look at the hands. The hands are oversized, the back is like it’s humped over, and that just gives the appearance of someone tired, but, ‘I’m doing this anyway.’”
A scan of the original sculpture was taken in Lexington and sent to the facility in Madison, which created an enlarged version out of Styrofoam that stands nearly six feet tall. Duffy has historically worked small, so when the enlarged piece arrived in Louisville last week, he was pleased to see his work on a different scale.
“Oh, it knocked me out,” Duffy said. “When we removed all [the packaging] and the piece was brought inside and stood up it was actually a lot larger than I thought it was going to be. It has a nice presence.”
Duffy will now begin the finishing touches on the large piece, which includes additional sculpting and shaping, and the application of resin to give it color and durability.
The final product is for sale but will temporarily reside at the Kentucky Center for African American Heritage on 18th and Muhammad Ali until a permanent buyer is found. Duffy is hopeful that an eventual buyer will put the piece on public display in Louisville, or elsewhere Kentucky.
“I do hope it stays in Louisville. My one desire is to have a public piece in the west end. I consider the piece a universal piece, so it doesn’t necessarily have to stay here. It would be nice if it does, but if there is a place here in Kentucky that is interested in the piece, I would love to see that,” Duffy said.
Duffy’s work can be found in galleries throughout Kentucky, but having a piece of this size is a dream realized.
“I just want to thank Madison Robots for allowing my dream to come real and Bill Fischer—I want to really make sure they know how much it’s appreciated, and I expect to do more of this type of work in the near future,” Duffy said. “People know my work, but I’ve never had a large enough piece where the public can see the work, and that’s really my reward. I’m really excited about this.”