By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Some of the unsung heroes are the brave men and women climbing electrical poles to restore power to the masses after a storm. Hoisington artist Bruce Bitter of B&B Metal Arts is paying tribute to those linemen with his "After the Storm" stainless steel installment, recently dedicated to Jim McVey at the new Wheatland Electric facility on east 10th Street in Great Bend.
The Board of Wheatland Electric dedicated the artwork to McVey in recognition of his efforts in managing the design and construction of the new facility. Jim's wife, Dana, reached out to Bitter for the project. Bitter answered by poring over photographs of linemen and speaking with supervisors to get every detail accurate.
"If you look, it's got the safety glasses, the current safety straps, the right tools," Bitter said. "Everything is up to date with what a Wheatland lineman would use. It was also based off their brand new poles they are currently using with the fiberglass tops and the bolt patterns."
The full depiction spans 30 feet and includes three power poles with two linemen working. Bitter worked on the project from August to October, perfecting many of the fine details and colors.
"The coloring is what I can get out of the stainless steel," he said. "It's more of an art than a science. You can't reproduce it, you have to know what you're doing. You take the heat like a paintbrush over the steel to create all the different colors."
Much like his previous 9/11 memorial that included steel from an actual World Trade Center building, "After the Storm" also incorporates various elements to heighten the work's authenticity.
"It actually has copper staples in there," Bitter said. "It has a copper ground wire ground down it. I simulated the wood on the telephone poles, I used the correct insulators, and how they tied the straps and electrical lines. Everything was correctly proportioned."
Since opening B&B Metal Arts with his brother, Brent, in 1995, Bruce has remained busy. Some of his larger projects include the 9/11 Memorial and a Steve Fossett memorial at Salina Regional Airport. Closer to home, Bruce recently completed an installment for the Barton Community College Fine Arts Building. He created the signs for Dry Lake Brewing and P&S Security, and the hospital benches for Clara Barton Hospital. In 2013, his life-sized baseball and softball players were commissioned for the entrance of the Great Bend Sports Complex.
"After the Storm" will be on display at Wheatland's open house on Thursday, Aug. 18 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The new facility is located at 200 10th Street in Great Bend.