WASHINGTON – The sculptor of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial now thinks he can complete the refinish of the statue before leaving U.S. next week, thanks to the National Park Service’s find of a sandblasting material similar to the type preferred by the artist.
Two experts from the park service started sandblasting Thursday morning under the eyes of the Chinese sculptor, Yixin Lei. The team expects the procedure to be done by this weekend, so time is back on their side again to finish the whole undertaking by Lei’s scheduled departure on Aug. 20.
“It looks like we can make it,” Lei’s son, Ke Shi, said.
A contract problem threatened to delay the refinishing, wherein a controversial, out of context quote was chiseled away from The Stone of Hope.
The contractor was not able to get insurance that covers the usage of the sandblasting material Lei wanted – material that was used on the original construction.
An Aug. 9 test using walnut shell as an alternative failed and left a temporary stain on the statue. But the park service brought in its own crew and successfully conducted another test Wednesday using a type of sintered grit called Jetmag as the substitute.
The MLK Memorial, dedicated in August 2011, sits on Washington’s National Mall. Authorities hope it can be ready for the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington on Aug. 28.