Wittenberg Professor Builds 1,600 Pound Steel Sculpture

Commissioned last October by the Centerville City Council, the sculpture is constructed of Cor-Ten steel which naturally rusts and bonds to the structure.

Mann's sculpture is a model of a stage which is 20 feet wide, eight feet deep and eight feet tall. The piece features a cello in front of a chair on which people can sit and pretend they are playing the instrument.

Mann worked with Springfield's Spradlin Brothers Welding to help construct the sculpture. The two have collaborated on more than 10 projects over a dozen years.

A member of Wittenberg's faculty since 1976, Mann's sculptures are dotted throughout the State of Ohio.

One of his most talked-about projects is a pair of oversized eyeglasses in front of Eye-1 Optical in Yellow Springs. His work also includes a holocaust sculpture at Cincinnati's Rockdale Temple and another at the Karl Road Branch of the Columbus Public Library.

Construction on Mann's sculpture, which will include assistance from several of his Wittenberg art students, will begin around 8:30 a.m. Thursday in Stubbs Park and last all day.