MIAMI (WSVN) – The sculptors behind the statue of former Miami Heat player Dwyane Wade are previewing its appearance ahead of its unveiling.

The statue is expected to be unveiled Sunday at the Kaseya Center.

The statue is currently protected from public view by a black box and curtain and was designed to honor Wade’s legendary career with the Heat.

“We are trying to improve on what we have done in the past in terms of design, execution and composition,” says sculptor Oscar León.

León and Omri Amrany are the artists behind the new statue of the Miami Heat legend. Their celebrated studio also brought to life the statue of Michael Jordan in Chicago and that of Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles.

They said that if fans thought Wade was tall in person, he was even more impressive in statue form.

“On D-Wade we probably had about 700 to 800 pounds of clay, so we had to make sure we had a very strong underlying support system to deal with that,” León said.

When asked what constitutes an effective and eternal work of art, the sculptors may have given an idea of ​​the pose in which the Wade statue would be located.

“We’re trying to eliminate gravity. If I can make you feel like the person is somehow in the air,” Amrany said.

While the exact pose remains a mystery, Wade was involved in the process and had input on his likeness.

“It was so cool to be part of the process, to be able to change things,” he said. “I’m very vain, so if my eyebrow was a little off, I let them know.”

The sculptors said Wade was very happy with the finished product.

“He walked away very happy. On that last visit he had actually seen everything he wanted to see. We made all the adjustments he wanted,” said León.

León said some surprises had been added to the statue.

“We added some Easter eggs, which was a personal touch for him that you see throughout the image,” he said. “I’m not going to go into details because I don’t want to reveal what that means.”

The sculptors remained tight-lipped when asked if the statue is connected to Wade’s heart, following the former NBA star’s comment, “My heart.” I will hold my heart. That’s the reason I’m there, that’s the reason I have a statue.”

Amrany offered 7News viewers a minor spoiler, advising fans to “watch the fingernails.”

Wade and the sculptors hope fans see the statue as a positive vision of what is possible.

“So I got the opportunity to bring it back to that Dwyane who was 19 when Jordan got his statue,” Wade said.

“The fans, the people who look at the kids and say, ‘Look what you can do in the future,’ that’s what will make me proud,” Amrany said.

The doors for the unveiling will open at 4 p.m. Tickets are free, but fans must reserve a spot.

FOR MORE INFO:
Unveiling of the Dwyane Wade statue
Kaseya Center
601 Biscayne Blvd.
Miami, FL 33132
Tickets

Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.