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Discovery Mhm Presented by the San Francisco Museum of Art and Station K P I X. Mhm. Yeah, and now your host for today, Dr Lloyd Luckman. Good afternoon. Today you're going to meet a man whose name is already legend in San Francisco. He is acknowledged as

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a great sculptor and recognized as the most unusual person for the kind or rather unique life, which he leaves. His name is Ben Amino Buffet. No, and these are two of his works, you see. But before you meet Benny Bufano, I want to tell you something

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about the kind of life he leads and show you the beginnings of a day for Benny Bufano at his studio. It's not yet six o'clock, and he's up and out for breakfast at the local coffee shop. The patron of the shop is also rather. The proprietor

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of the shop is also one of Benny's patrons. His interest in Benny's work is just as live as any one of us might have in terms of the artist at work. And so he starts our office off with a hearty breakfast each day. Yeah, jovial laugh

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as a result of his favorite columns in the newspaper. And as he leaves the coffee shop and goes on back to his studio, he meets many a familiar character, his friends on the way. And so Benny Bufano Well, cock like me. And tell us, please, something

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about this latest project of yours, the model which we're very fortunate to see. I understand this is a very great strange project. I know. I'll be called crazy for doing this. It's supposed to be the interior of the earth. This is a cross section of the

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interior diarrhea and the uh huh, the central core, the mosaic, which represents the inside of the earth. There are some 10 to 30 miles of crust which is supposed to be the hard crust of the earth. Then there the granite and the bass off and the

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all events Tell me, Benny, is this just a monument or statue to be a monument? And they're going to be a theater inside. It's around theater with a circular state. Uh, the it would sit between 1 502,000 people. So this is a building. How high will

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it be? It would be about 20 stories in height. This is 18 scale, 24 inches. And who was your inspiration for this? Well, the inspiration for this with the Museum of Birmingham Birmingham in Alabama. I see. And I was asked to make this model. So, uh,

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here it is. Here's the model. I'm about to ship it tonight, and they don't know what's coming. Tell me, what does. The hand symbol of the hand is the hand of progress. This is the entrance of the theater, and then the exits are up in here.

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This is an open area. Spectacular proposal. This would be about 200 ft right in here. And this is from the mosaic to this point. Here is about 100 ft. And then there's the the hand inside of the earth the most and core of the earth. The

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reflection murders hand reflect. I see. Well, now I see so many other things about the studio here. I'm struck by this rather slender statue over here. You tell me something about it. Well, look at you as a group of five figures. Well, this is one of

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them, and this is the bodies of wood. And then I have this deal which goes right over, please. I see the Bafana Trail. Mm, I think that'll do it. This is I would call your trademark funny stainless. Isn't that right? Thank you. And this is the

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case for the thing. And then they about to head the hedges in stone. There's three mediums in this. What kind of stone is that? This was one of the hardest stones that I. As a matter of fact, I've been trying to find out what it is.

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It's a sort of a con clamor. It's the hottest stone that I've ever tackle. I started about $60 worth of tools and it took me about one hour. I couldn't, wouldn't budge and finally began and and the result was I was a little harder than the

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stone, I guess. I hope. Tell me I'm working steel. What type of tool do you use? Well, since I was the one that originated the process of working stainless steel direct natural, there's no tools to be bought. So I have to make my own tools and

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prove that I use our malice and and uhh dollies and pieces of wood, which I use like in the case of this is part of a of an eagle that I'm working. And then these tools, for instance, like, take a thing like this. He rasps us

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straight, and then I bend him. I shape them myself because you can't buy them this way for use on wood or this is used on wood. And this is the A C. Now these are old files. For instance, stainless steel is a medium that your files

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don't last very long. So after two or three days, your files are dull. So I I reshaped the man, make scrapers out of them. So the tool doesn't just have a shorter life. That's right, because it might also make, like take that it was a fire.

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It's now would gouge. Okay, so it's it's become a chisel, and I have all scrapers, and, uh, I have quite a good many shapes that there's, uh, these here. These are old songs that I turned into scrapers. This, by the way. It's wonderful steel. You can't

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buy any better feel than that. So now they throw them away and I just use them. Makes papers. So you have no usually at all, but you have for the great Well, this certainly gives an evidence of a tremendous amount of work every day. When do

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you ever get out of your studio? Since you've come back to it, I managed to get out. Thank you for breakfast in the morning. What about noon? So I walked. The more the more she always. Good afternoon. That's where you're where your mosaic is it? That's

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all. We have a chance to show if you were a few shots of that mosaic. Now tell me about this mosaic. How are you commissioned this? Well, this was really a wonderful project. As a matter of fact, it's the only project that happened to make out.

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All right, when uh huh, When more. Trying to get ahold of me. At first, he was a little scared, and finally we got together and uhh, uh, we had lunch. We had lunch. And so he said, Here are three big walls. Would you like to do

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something with these walls? And I said yes. I was very impressed me very much. It's quite large. So he said, Well, he says, you know, I'm keep a restaurant. How about using some subjects with food? So I looked at him. And I said, uh, you're going

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to have so much food in the kitchen. What, do you want me to do it with food? Let me work something out, he said. I should have known better, and they says, You go ahead. He gave me $20. You go ahead and work out some project

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out of that and the result for the mosaic. There certainly outstanding works of art. And you call those sculptures Well, I mean, they could be. Originally, the mosaics were done by sculptors. Of course, there are little stones, and I imagine this couple would be involved in

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this thing. Well, then they're probably murals, right? No, that's the mistake that most people really make. We call the murals. They really mosaic Mosaic is a melodic that's well, getting away from the mosaics for a moment. Here is a very familiar figure, one of the work

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that you've done with Franklin Roosevelt for President Roosevelt as your subject. That's right. You see, I was on the road both dollar a year, man for about 7.5 years, and if you remember about during the time of the United Nations, the Saturday Evening Post wrote that

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out that I was the only dollar a year man that didn't have a dollar. We're all millionaires. Well, tell me about these animals here. This is something new. Oh, yes, Well, that's That's a beaver. It's a piece of wood that I get up at Lake Thao.

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I go there every summer, and I got acquainted with the Forester, and he's given me free hand that I could have all the trees I want at the lake. They have a friend who has a cabinet there, so we go up for three or four weeks

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a month. Then this reminds me of some of your statues that could be found in San Francisco, about how many do we have now in San Francisco on 2023 pieces that belongs to the federal government, which were loaned to the city and they're in various projects.

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I see, like the housing project, the housing projects that the the French A ST uh Valencia Gardens, about 14 pieces there, and then there's some aquatic park. Now, though some haven't gone to the Valencia Gardens are aren't fortunate enough to live there. Could I mentioned the

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Sun Yat San statue of ST Mary's Park. Most every San Franciscan knows that. That's the vignettes and uhh! Practically everybody seems to know about that. That was, by the way, the first statue that was done in stainless steel. The very first of all, that's right, and

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your first one in my first one in stainless steel. And then I have in mind to the bear, the bear and head. Where is that stand? Oh yes, that's at some the West Side project near the Cow Palace there. That's supposed to be the California bear

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and the head in front is supposed to represent California. And then we have another landmark here, the San Francisco Seals. Where is he? Oh, yes, The seal is up at Aquatic Park. As a matter of fact, there are three seals. Then there's one pair of seals

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is at the Valencia Gardens on 15th Street, and then one at quite a park. I'm fascinated Benny, by this cartoon here. Oh, yeah. Tell me, what is this? Well, this is the cartoon that I made for the peace statue which the Chronicle has taken over. It's

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been doing a mosaic. We always make the actual size drawings. And then these drawings are cut up in sections and then the mosaic blue down to the small sections. Some of the work for the peace statue you did a common and Roberts in San Francisco and

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tell me there's a chance here for us to see just some of the outline of the sister, the Statue of Peace. And this is the figure that you see right there to give a child. It's a composite figure of all the races, so this isn't a

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statue on the statue. It's a mosaic mosaic. It's a mosaic. It's the first time that I've used Mosaic in front of a match, and the mosaic is in the round, and it's set into a stainless steel frame sort of. Well, tell us something about the, uh,

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the main materials of the statue of stainless steel, about three tons of stainless and 10 10 to 11 tons of granite. The granite is the upper part of the head and bus, which is black California black granite, polished. It looks almost like onyx, doesn't it? Oh,

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yes. And they the work of the mosaic. How will it be handled? Well, the mosaic is right and it's right in front of the statue. And then I made this frame that below the statue right below the statute comes about I would say about profile about

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halfway up the statue a little farther up than half. What does this indicate? Well, this is what I call my chart. For instance, you see all of these numbers here. This is one of the panels which I made more and each of these numbers each of

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these sections was separate sections where the cartoon was cut in. The mosaic was glued onto the paper, and then we transferred right onto the wall. You make a regular jigsaw that it's sort of a jigsaw puzzle does each of these are numbered. And then the back

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is also worked out with the line so that when we put them on the mosaic there, they match now on the Statue of Peace. Has the city of San Francisco purchased that? Now the statute pieces with The Chronicle at the San Francisco Chronicle. They took it

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over, and in so doing, they more or less saved something, I think, extremely important with Cisco. It's been in storage for about oh, 15 years well paying rent for 15 years. You a chance now to see you going into the Chronicle building there. Who is it

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that you're seeking out? Well, I went up to see, uh, jp con. I see. We went up to the city hall to view the spot where the statues to be placed mhm right near the Orpheum wall, as you will see. Oh, yes. There you are. Off

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the civic center. We're walking down from the city center. This is the most unusual situation because it recalls to my mind the original controversy that developed over that theater wall when Mr Pant Agius built the theater. Yes, it's quite a quite a controversy about the whole.

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For years, he was anxious to have it improved, and it's probably gone through all the stages. Even when you were a member of the art Commissioner is probably thought I was a member of the commission. I proposed a matter of fact. I made it several designs

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for the things I see. But mm, they just didn't go through. Now tell me running in this mosaic that your these are some of the tiles. But where did you get piles? Oh, pardon. These are the real thing. They're stones there. It's quartz and pigment, which

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I went to Venice to make. The Italians have been the only ones that have been making these stones. And they were first used in the during the time of Constantine at the beginning of the Christian era. And, well, then they were lost for about 1000 years.

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So I went to Italy located. This family has been making these tones for about 200 years, and we engaged six other men and we about 2.5 months. We may put the molten material in and then take it out and pour it on the plate. We'll see

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the these pictures are in Venice while we were doing the stones. And the women are cutting these stones. And that's right. And they all have a uniform shape. Is that right? Well, no, Not exactly. Not exactly. But they these are here are a little bit there,

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an entirely different shapes for the ones that I have with you today to your specifications. We cut them about a half inch and then, of course, we re cut them as well as we Each one we have a very interesting film to show our viewers of

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you at work making this mosaic for the peace statue real close up of you in your studio. Working on this new mosaic of yours and one is one of the things that people should bear in mind mostly about Mosaic. You've given them the importance of the

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courts, like stones which are manufactured, then cut to your specifications. Now, how about ah? Mentioning a few other items before we see you at work that should prepare our viewers. Uh, you mean regarding the mosaic? Well, why do they have to be going through it? Of

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course, it all depends on the size of the of the mosaic that we do. But I was the solid. Yeah, you see, the during a time when the Italians made these the color is solidly through throughout the entire thing. Because in doing a mosaic, we always

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make the opposite in reverse. You know, in other words, upside down. And naturally we choose the best side and we place this down to the glue or whether it's sometimes you do them direct right on the wall. We place the best face to the thing, and

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then the paper is pulled off and the cement is put on. And then you get the Yeah, you have to polish a finished surface or Jose. That's it, by the way, they come out, they come out. They're not touched after that at all. I see that's

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exactly the way they come out of the kids. In other words, we make them we hired by them in order to swing out the blades that you see, and then you have nothing further to do after you've laid it out. Well, as a matter of fact,

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that's the most permanent form of painting. In other words, there's nothing that will damage these colors. And so therefore, they make a perfect exteriors as it's going to be in the model that you were showing seen. The program has been in Venice, so I yeah, over

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1000 years old. That's correct. I hadn't hadn't even happened that the color hasn't deteriorated in the league, not in the slides, so they're listening all the time. You know, there's there's nowhere to the thing at all. There's no upkeep. You make it an important distinction, though,

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don't you? Between the courts mosaic then and the tile decoration. You see the tile, The tile is made out of play. And you find that the title They they glaze only the top surface. Yeah, And so you shouldn't call the tile decoration of Jose very much

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a commercial for all right. We'll compromise on that. You have something very interesting here was probably just before the scale of colours that have been prepared at the kiln there in Venice and then cut to these sizes. And from that you make your pattern and these

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stones are laid and you have a jigsaw puzzle, as you mentioned. Well, maybe in a moment or two, we can now go to our film on the making of the mosaic. But one of the important parts of the film you told me was rather of the

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mosaic was setting the pan, or you call it a frame. And I insist on calling it a pen. And now we can go into that because here we are, apparently very, very late at night. And you're still at work in your studio. And this is this

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is too. At three o'clock in the morning, what we working at this? Why? Why that particular our? Well, a good hour, A good hour. And then it was the only time that I that one man, that I could get one man now, So one of your

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student Or would you calling fellow artists? One with student and the other one was Uhh technician. And he was a good setup. I see more like he's the only one out here. What is he about to do? You're describing now this preparation of a mortar? Oh,

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yes, that we're mixing the mortar right there, you see? And what's the That's just ordinary brick mortar. No, that's it's limes. Sand, lime sand and cement. Once again to Lyman to San. Here we see the reverse of the motion. That's right. The reverse to the most

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like this is these are the stones before they put onto the cement. Yeah, these are the they include to the to the paper. That's right. They glued to the paper. You will see as we pick one up. Right now it's the We're starting with the head.

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The upper part of the head removing any foreign particles. That's right there. Those are the eyes you see, head was done in two pieces. Those are the largest pieces of the mosaic. We don't usually make them as large as that. You see the way we're carrying

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one of those. Now we put the, uh, put it upside down, and we put the cement this this mixture that we have over about a half inch, about a half inch of a cement like mortar. That's right. We put half on the mosaic and half on

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the pan on the frame, and this frame is stainless steel, also the frame of stainless steel. The frame cost about 1800 goodness, the expense that goes into that material. And now they're simply dressing up the rats right there. The work and you'll see we'll pick up

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another section now the lower part of the section. Now we're putting on the right in. That's right. That's still the upper section with mhm. It's very, very careful work because, you see they have to be matched. Otherwise, all of your planning goes for not, as a

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matter of fact, we had a little accident here. This brush there was that putting on the half inch, you were saying, goes on the front row the brush was what we call a little wet cement for the fixed. Make contact some tooth there. That's right. There's

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another piece. That's the lower part of a This piece is that's going down to the figure. You see, we carefully lay it and then we push it in place. You will note that those now sections that zigzags and then they sort of fit into a sort

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of a mode. Is there anything separating them? Or they just joined now in one continuous survived. And then we moved them. Because after we have the whole panel, we pushed them with a two by four No, inside pieces of the frame in that work. Here you

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are giving stern directions. Now we're starting to take the paper off. Now we're taking the paper up. The I see the you get the one. I let you see that. Too bad we can't see this in color. Well, someday we're going to be possible, but not

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today. I noticed that you've continued here the same emphasis as you have in this one of the subjects in the mosaic at Moore's of the repetition of figure, this was done that, uh, 14 years ago, 14 years ago. And I made that 14 years. Mm. Yeah,

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well, now this has been most interesting. And I wonder if we could prepare to look again at the mosaic that you have, uh, in this sphere that you say is going to be sent today to Alabama. Shipping this to Alabama tonight, Just as you see here,

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the mosaic got a little bit smaller, although they're quite big. It is. But there wasn't enough time. So I used the large mosaic instead. Whether we're thinking of the geology of Heraclitus, that's right. Or of today's geology. What you're what you're depicting here is that this

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is the earth. They're about 10 miles, and then, uh, the, uh, about 30 miles below the granite begin to show. And then the bath salts the black graph harder than granite. Then the old event, which is the hardest of the stones. And then from that, the

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iron begins where the red begins to the I. This is a molten. That's the central call. Happy. The and it's It's a warning state, so to speak. And this is the hand of progress or the hand of genius emerging out of the out of the earth

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to give this material to man. And this little figure here is the scale will give us some idea of the normal human being against this tremendous Backstrom. That's right. Tell me something about this. This type of cartoonists. This always precedes the work. This always precedes the

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mosaic. Doing a mosaic, you make your drawings the exercise that the mosaic could be a matter of fact. We make them about a half inch to one inch bigger because your paper shrinks as as the as we went the papers. Let me call your attention to

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these and back of you. These are new works of yours. This is This is a group of 12 going manufacturer. They are leaving the tweet for New York City And the next one? What is this? This is the truth. Very few people have ever true is

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the smallest mammal living. They're about the size of A. They're about this big and they have to eat If they if they stay without eating a half hour, they die and they eat about a steer a day. If they were the size of them about human

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beings. Don't. Here's an interesting penguin that resist coming back to this very familiar figure. Press club cat. I've seen him in black granite. Haven't yet. And, uh, this is the bronze one bank in New York. I'm hoping it's going to New York, New York. Part of

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that was part of that host group of animals and the little board. That's a big a little bad. Uh, that's work Direct. That's starting copies. You see, the hollowing dogs from the ivory broke one of them. Oh, where is that going to be exhibited? Or that's

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just one of your That's one of your own collection. No, it's in my own collection. Yes, Mhm. And when you finish with the fever that we introduced a little while ago, have you place in mind for him? Well, you see, I don't worry about my things

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until they made I see the back of your another form. That's how that's the reason why I get in trouble. I'll make you this interesting sources. A fish well, Benny Bufano. I certainly have had a most interesting day with you in your studio, and with this

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opportunity to see you at work, I certainly want to thank you and congratulate you on your new scheme for the people in the east and tell our listeners and viewers how exciting it is, isn't it? To spend the day with a man like Benny Bufano, whose

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day really begins. As I pointed out to you at six. In the morning and finishes sometimes as late as three in the morning, I don't know. Whenever you get enough rest to do all of this work, it certainly you deserve to be the legendary name in

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San Francisco which you've become in your own lifetime. Thank you for joining us. See us again next week. Wherever Discovery. Mm. Discovery has been brought to you by the San Francisco Museum of Art and Station Kpi. Yeah. Yeah. Next week, Discovery will present the last

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program in the present series, the Graphic Arts today, in which you will see how contemporary artists work in the media of lithography and etching. Yeah, Mhm.