| An Eagle Is Born... | |||||||||||||||||
|
The American Spirit Eagle In April 1979 the laminated pine and oak sculpture of the Bald Eagle was completed after 2,100 hours of work. The Eagle has an eleven foot wing span and is completely guilded in 23 K white and gold leaf. The Eagle weighs 200 pounds. For exhibit, the sculpture is raised above the base and lowered on a special iron pole which enters the Eagles chest. When raised for exhibition, one wing tip is 15 feet into the air and is perfectly balanced in an airborne, attack position. At the time the Eagle was being sculpted, Robert was working in a waterfront studio in Santa Barbara, California. This allowed visitors and tourists to watch this master craftsman at work. Many people witnessed the creation of this beautiful sculpture from the beginning stages to the final guilding of the gold leaf. |
|||||||||||||||||
 |
Robert Yoakum is a talented sculpter. One of his most outstanding works is the the creation of an amazing Bald Eagle scuplture. This eagle has represented the pride of a nation, the hope for those lost and wounded in war and as an inspiration for future generations. One the following pages, you will see the creation of the Eagle as well as see images and information about the National Tours that the Eagle has been in. | ||||||||||||||||
| The Eagle takes shape. The beginnings of the wing structure. the upswept wings began with a notch cut the length of the wing-less body. Matching the angle of the notch with the first layer of sugar-pine becomes the eagles eleven foot wings. April 1978 | |||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||
| Santa Barbara Studio. The Eagle is taking shape. You can see the head in the background. The sculpture took an entire year to build. Robert worked in his studio on Cabrillo Blvd. | |||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||
| The main structure is nearing completion here. The laminated layers of sugar pine can be seen. Here the wings weigh about 700 pounds. Robert will carefully sculpt the wings until the majority of the wood is gone. Leaving only the perfectly carved feathers. The head shown here is not intended to be the final head. | |||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||
| Nearing completion, one year later, the sculpture, soon to be dedicated as "American Spirit" will begin it's National Tours | |||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
||||||||||||||||
| The Eagle Story Continues...click to go to the next page | |||||||||||||||||
