When I was making my weekly mosaic for ArtMind, I found a picture of a huge red button sculpture. I liked it instantly ! so big and bright ! Did some research into outside button sculptures and found some really great ones. Here they are, starting with the red one from my mosaic.
1. button, button, who's got the button?, 2. Lorrie's BUTTON, 3. grand rapids 1, 4. Lorrie's ButtonHy Zelkowitz
Lorrie's Button, 1976
Painted fiberglass and urethane foam
Ah-Nab-Awen Park, Grand Rapids, MI, USA
A huge red button on a tilted axis. The center of the button is pierced with four large holes. The sculpture was designed for children to climb on and is installed in a playground area of the park.
1. Les oeuvres d'art publiques de la région de Granby et de la Montérégie, 2. MTLskyline on skyscrapercity*forums
Esther Lapointe
Bouton, 1977
Tufo stone and marble
Lorne Park, Saint-Lambert, Quebec, Canada
1. The Button sculpture on the Penn Campus, 2. Button Sculpture 2, 3. Cute as a button, 4. Claes Oldenburg ‘Split Button’, Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaClaes Oldenberg and Coosje Van Bruggen
Split Button, 1981
cast in reinforced aluminum and painted
Blanche Levy Park, Philadelphia, PA, USA
The Split represents the river Schuylkill; it divides the button into four parts symbolic for Philadelphia’s original city quadrants designed by William Penn in 1683.
1. Downtown (4), 2. Thimble, 3. verabee.com, 4. Thimble & tattooStephen Cruise
Uniform Measure/Stack, 1997
bronze thimble and eight concrete buttons
northwest corner of Richmond Street and Spadina Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
This area used to be the centre of garment factories of Toronto. The statue reflects on the contributions of its workers and on the presence of 'touch' in the making of garments.
1. Art District, 2. Needle and button, 3. Me in the Fashion District, 4. Button HolesPentagram Architectural Services
Needle and Button, 1995
Seventh Avenue and 39th Street, New York, NY, USA
The octagonal kiosk, which is the Fashion District Information Center, incorporates the world's largest button leaning against the kiosk, held upright by a long steel needle. The 5 holes are making a stylized F, which is the logo for the fashion district, which you can see on top of the kiosk.
1. alvik on eFoto.lt, 2. SCANDINAVIANS & BALTICS, 3. SCANDINAVIANS & BALTICS, 4. SocialinėMechanika
Vytautas Narutis
Buttons, 2005
Vienybes aikste, Kaunas, Lithuania
The sculptor says: "A button is a symbol that accompanies us from childhood. A button connects two parts of clothes, the destinies of people, two cities (i.e. Vilnius and Kaunas)". (Many thanks to the Lithuanian members of the European Street Team on Etsy for all the information so far !)
Do you know more button statues, memorials or sculptures ???? Please let me know !
(from my own collection)Buttons can be made from lots of metals; copper, steel, brass, pewter, silver, aluminium, etc. Most metal buttons are stamped in dies (like coins); the more expensive ones were engraved or chased by hand.
(from my own collection)Looking at the history of buttons, metal is the most common material used. They were probably first made in the 13th or 14th century from less-precious metals. Later jewellers began making buttons in silver and gold. During the renaissance, golden buttons were the rage of european royalty, often decorated with jewels.
(from Annette Wilzbach und Martina Wilzbach-Wald. Knopf Design)In the 18th century large copper buttons with geometric and other non-pictorial designs were the fashion in men’s clothes.
(from Nancy Fink and Maryalice Ditzler. Buttons: A Collectors Guide)During the Victorian area, metal buttons with pictures of people, animals, flowers and other objects were in fashion.
(from Annette Wilzbach und Martina Wilzbach-Wald. Knopf Design)Another type that was popular for women’s clothing in the 19th century were the brilliant shiny cut steel buttons, made of many tiny faceted steel pieces.
(from Annette Wilzbach und Martina Wilzbach-Wald. Knopf Design)Coins were often used for making buttons. They are often found in traditional folk costumes all over the world.
(from Annette Wilzbach und Martina Wilzbach-Wald. Knopf Design)Brass and pewter were the most used metals for mass produced buttons, and also for uniform buttons. I found this funny story about soldiers in the beginning of the 19th century: their buttons were of the same material as their bullets, so many soldiers carried molds in which they, after melting their buttons, could cast their buttons into bullets if they ran out of the latter ones. 
(from Nancy Fink and Maryalice Ditzler. Buttons: A Collectors Guide)I did a search for metal buttons on Etsy, and was surprised to find some really great specimen:
1. antique metal and fabric from AmandaShellnut
2. Sterling silver from MarieCristine
3. Copper from SteppingStones
4. gunmetal from ILoveVintagePatterns
5. pewter from thebeadlady2004
6. silver from melissajlee
7. antique metal and plastic from jen1
8. sterling silver from NinaGibsonDesigns
9. pewter from treasurecast
10. pewter from mamacitabeadworks
11. silver from UraniumCafe
12. pewter from Roosterick
I would love to try making my own metal buttons; after some surfing I found the following how-to's:
Bottle Cap Buttons (from Sparkle Jars)
How to Make Bottle-Cap Buttons for Knit Slippers (from Lee Meredith on craftstylish)
DIY Coin Buttons (from Chrisjob)Based on:Marilyn V. Green. The Button Lover's Book (Creative Machine Arts Series). Chilton Book Co, 1991. ISBN 978-0801980107
Annette Wilzbach und Martina Wilzbach-Wald. Knopf Design. Deutscher Fachverlag, 1990. ISBN 3-87150-315-0
Nancy Fink and Maryalice Ditzler. Buttons: A Collectors Guide. Quintet Publishing, 1993. ISBN 1-56138-215-9
