Bronze sculpture adds nostalgic touch

Sandton boasts a new iconic landmark, situated directly opposite the JSE on Maude Street. To commemorate the launch of the refurbished The Bull Run restaurant, owner Ivan van Rensburg commissioned Michael Cañadas of Bronze Art Africa to sculpt something distinctive.

“After 18 years, the restaurant, situated in the heart of SA’s financial district, has itself become an icon,” says Van Rensburg. “We wanted to celebrate that status, and create nostalgia for the old trading floor days of the stock exchange with our own bull sculpture.”

Cañadas, a renowned wildlife sculptor, says creating a bronze bull on this scale offered a stimulating challenge. It took three months to complete and involved an iterative creative process. “Once the design and pose were finalised on paper, we followed an intensive process to create the mould which the foundry used to complete the full-sized bronze casting,” says Cañadas.

“The result is an imposing bull statue more than two metres tall, with its head flung high, thrusting its horns up at the competition, showing no fear.”

Parallels will be drawn between Sandton’s bull and Arturo Di Modica’s famous Charging Bull statue in New York. However, Cañadas highlights important differences.

“My sculpture is realistic, whereas the NYC bull is a caricature. It also has a smooth, hard surface; I used freestyle sculpting techniques. The resultant texture symbolises the unpredictably of the stock market, and the freedom we as South Africans enjoy.”