On the fringes of the extraordinary, ZincArt, the zinc roofer with outsized sculptural ambitions, has embarked on an adventure of a completely different caliber: the creation of a giant Iron Man statue, all in metal. It's an incredible story that began two years ago at the Hôtel Hommage in Baie Nettlé.
A true 360° turn in his career, for this artist who decided that roofs had better watch out as he created metal works of art by hand, without machines, and with all his metal heart.
This titanic project landed in SXM two years ago at Hôtel Hommage in Baie Nettlé. Since then, he's taken up residence and built a metal Iron Man that would make even Tony Stark drool.
Mountains of sketches had to be drawn, astronomical quantities of wooden pieces assembled - 640 to be precise - to form the backbone of this colossal work. And then, in October 2021, as the leaves began to fall, the wooden structure was finally finished, giving way to ZincArt's sparks of electricity and creativity to bring Iron Man's mechanisms and armor to life.
There's even some magic on the menu: ZincArt has added electrical cables and sheathing for the lights. Imagine, Iron Man's head moves thanks to a motion detector, and even says hello in every conceivable language! And let's talk about those epic shoes, 85-centimetre boots that project light and even smoke.
ZincArt, the anonymous artist who prefers his art to make all the noise, like a magician, metamorphosed this block of wood into a work of art in copper, zinc and brass, creating a 3.50-metre sculpture. The scale of his commitment and passion are worthy of a titanic epic. While his attention to detail matches the growth of his fan community. ZincArt doesn't mess around with perfection, and he humorously reminds us: "A big challenge for me to meet, because Iron Man fans won't allow me the slightest error!"
So, if you happen to be near the Hôtel Hommage and are looking for Iron Man, he may not be there in person, but you can certainly meet ZincArt in his workshop by the lagoon. There, he'll tell you all about his mad, passionate journey into the Marvel metal universe. Yes, this humble and brilliant artist continues to blow us away, piece by piece, hammer by hammer, letting Iron Man come to life under his magical fingers.