Monday, February 25, 2008

The Plane Makers!

Many have been inquiring as to who and how the Crystal Flight Airplane statues were made. The answer is TivoliToo! This Minnesota-based firm got their start by making small charm bracelet jewelry and transformed into a creative manufacturer of all things 3D! Chances are, you have already seen or heard of some of their other contributions. They are responsible for creating the 3D characters in the Rainforest Cafe Restaurants, they manufactured the street statues for DC's "Party Animals" and "Pandamania" projects, and created a series of Peanuts-related characters for St. Paul Minnesota to celebrate Chuck Schultz.

For Crystal Flight, TivoliToo's in-house designers helped the Crystal City BID envision the look and size of the two airplane statue types: the fighter jet and the vintage plane. They then use a proprietary cast-and-mold process to create the statues. The airplanes arrived in Crystal City via three separate 18-wheelers.


When the airplanes arrived at the BID's storage location at the Century Center (provided by Lowe Enterprises), the approximately 50-pound airplanes were attached to wooden palettes. Project partner JK Moving and Storage provided staff to remove the wooden palettes and attach the statues to the concrete bases. TivoliToo specially designed a plan for the concrete base to facilitate easy installation and provide a perfectly balanced statue. The concrete bases were made to the exact specifications by partner Miller and Long. Weighing in at about 481 pounds, the bases ensure the airplanes will stay put once placed on the streets of Crystal City.

Check out TivoliToo’s website for a good summary of their firm! To go straight to their street statue products go here.

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