By Frank Ross
This large copper sculpture titled Father Sky is Watching Us attracted a lot of attention
Copper artist Charles Bellofatto comes by his art and passion for creating from a personal frame of reference but he also feels his ancestral Cherokee roots have influenced his direction in life. His mother was part Cherokee and he explained, “I learned those ways as a young man until my family converted to Christianity, but I never forgot who I was. Native Americans have a long history of working with copper, and many of the Southeastern tribes did a lot of copper smithing. Typically medicine men and chiefs were the only ones to wear copper on their body but other adornments were worn as well such as wrist and arm cuffs and beads. They wore gorgets, or breast plates, very similar to those worn by European soldiers. These soldiers used copper to identify themselves or their units, like dog tags, but they were also decorative,” he explained.
In the photo of Bellofatto, posing with one of his sun sculptures titled “Thoughtful Sun”, he is wearing a gorget that he created from copper sheeting. The gorget speaks of his heritage as well as his love of copper. His business card states his work and his passion in one term, Surrealistic Artist. “Because of the nature of surrealism, I’m more of a traditional surrealist and don’t care for today’s Nuevo surrealists. Surrealism appeals to be because it gives the idea that our perception, dreams and any number of emotions can be experienced in being one with the art,” he said.
Bellofatto has been a painter as well as a sculptor. “I’m an individualist. I started out studying sculpting and mixed medium, converting objects into art. I was in a junkyard, looking for pieces to work with and discovered a roll of copper in a trailer they called their ‘collectables’ trailer. I thought about copper for a long time and was strongly drawn to it and intrigued by it. I went back and bought that roll. It had been used in roofing work and was in pretty rough shape, but I was able to work with it. Now copper is my main medium,” he said.
“When I first started considering copper I saw that a lot of people were using it but their work was very repetitive and boring. I spent a lot of time studying copper smith techniques. From my experience working in a machine shop I learned what it takes to mold, form and bend metal and how to bond it together with a torch. I considered making jewelry also, but people don’t care for their skin being green so I decided on metal sculpture. It has been an evolutionary journey,” he said.
Charles Bellofatto poses with a large sun sculpted from copper sheeting, wearing his gorget.
Totally involved in all aspects of creativity, he writes poetry about the artwork he has created, but feels that working with copper is preferred method of expression.
Bellofatto started out making sun sculptures and soon started getting specific requests for custom pieces. “The sun is a strong spiritual influence for many people. All of the suns I have created have been sold. I really make them according to the individual that commissions the piece, naming them and designing to fit the personality of that person.”
Special requests are often unusual, such as the recently request from a European couple that were getting married. They wanted a spider to use in their wedding ceremony. According to Bellofatto, spiders are sacred symbols in Indian spirituality so he was happy to accommodate their request and the two pieces were used predominantly in their wedding ceremony.
For a piece titled simply “Lizard”, he experimented with several coloring techniques to create the brightly colored piece. He prefers to chemically alter the copper rather than coating it with paint. For this particular piece he used vinegar and 10-10-10 fertilizer to achieve the coloration but noted the fertilizer left a crusty texture. He also prefers using sulfur for achieving a black color. The lizard is 18” in length.
At the Ybor City Art in the Park event recently, just east of downtown Tampa, FL. Bellofatto’s large piece title “Father Sky is Watching Us” attracted a lot of attention but it was “Mother Earth Takes a Respite” that caught the judge’s eye. The judge was so taken with this work he awarded Best of Show for the sculpture and a check for $1,000 in recognition for his exceptional work. While his work has been featured in several galleries in the Tampa Bay area, but the best way to have an original Bellofatto copper sculpture in your home or office would be to call him at 1-813-935-1276.
For a great price on copper sheeting, contact QuickShipMetals.com.
Pete McCaskill is a Quick Ship Metals customer that gives copper sheeting some very attractive twists and turns, not to mention very unique coloration. McCaskill was born and raised in Vicksburg, Mississippi where he took every opportunity to study art. Now, he feels he has found his true calling. 
