CCU sculptor/professor continues work on The Chanticleer

Sculptor Bryan Rapp, the first artist-in-residence for the visual arts program in the Thomas W. and Robin W. Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts, has started constructing a new interpretation of Chauncey, called “The Chanticleer.”

Please note that The Chanticleer will NOT replace the Chauncey statue that stands at the entrance of the TD Sports Complex. It will be placed at the new entrance to Brooks Stadium at the corner of S.C. 544 and University Boulevard after the second phase of the stadium expansion.

Rapp is teaching Art 499, which will be a hands on, labor intensive studio class preparing the Chanticleer sculpture for bronze.

Students will assist in mold making and the wax lay up (casting).

"We'll then systematically put the statue back together again, in wax, like a three dimensional jigsaw puzzle," said Rapp. "We'll work to clean any seem lines and other imperfections in wax until it is identical to the clay sculpt. Then we'll cut it apart into small sections and make sand molds. If all goes well, hopefully, we may do a few bronze casting by the end of the semester."

The 12-foot mascot sculpture will greet visitors to Brooks Stadium once that complex is expanded from 9,124 seats to around 19,000 as part of the Chanticleers’ move to the Sun Belt Conference and Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).

“With two entrances, one on 544 and one into the TD Sports Complex, there was a feeling that we needed a more visible Chauncey for fans entering the football stadium,” said Easton Selby, chair of CCU’s visual arts department. “The first Chauncey is slightly larger than life size and more interactive. The new guy will be larger and more intimidating.”