If renowned local metal sculptor Josh Andres ever needs a showcase studio of his tremendous talent, he can readily ask if the viewer would like to see his indoor “studio” or his outdoor “studio.” Essentially he has both and they both share his remarkable talents in working with steel and other metals. Andres was busy this morning putting the finishing touches on his latest commissioned project — a stellar replica of a steam locomotive and coal car now ensconced overhead at Silver Beach Pizza located, appropriately enough, in the St. Joseph Amtrak Train Depot below the bluff.
Andres has spent a good part of the last three months conducting his research for authenticity and then hand-crafting the gleaming new steel locomotive and coal car that appear to be racing towards the signature front of house bar on a parallel track above several dining booths in the main dining room at Silver Beach Pizza.
The concept was the brainchild of Tony Bertig, the Silver Beach partner who is perpetually the idea man behind the various enhancements, decor, design and the overall wow factor for the popular pizzeria at the base of the Broad Street stairway to the waterfront.
Bertig and his partner Jay Costas — the business leader in the partnership — were contemplating the empty, dead-space, above several of the booths when Bertig developed the idea of capitalizing on the shadow-box nature of the space and envisioned a locomotive there to celebrate the heritage of the train station which has been a central cog in passenger rail service for decades in the community.
Inasmuch as Josh Andres, the brilliant Benton Harbor metal-working artist, had already produced virtually everything else in the house that is crafted from metal, Tony knew who his go-to guy would be. Andres has produced everything from the elevated pizza stands at each table and the metal numbers identifying where you are seated for rapid order response, to the glass-topped rail bed tableau which serves as a table for 8 or 10 on the upper deck of the restaurant. He has also crafted all of the bar stools on both levels, the Schooner Lights on the upper deck, the hand railings, restroom signs and more right down to the candy dish up front.
His new creation — soon to bear the traditional gold-leaf lettering which will identify it as Engine #410 (a nod to the pizzeria’s street address) and naming it The Silver Beach Express — is an absolute work of superb industrial art.
The gleaming steel locomotive and coal car weigh a combined 1,200lbs and had to be installed in several parts by utilizing a heavy equipment lift while Josh assembled all of the final accoutrements on-site. He used a small scale model as a guidepost for his final work which runs 24-feet long, stands 5-feet tall and is 3.5-feet wide.
Diners arriving by the main entrance will be greeted by the new train which also features a front headlamp and a lighted cab for the engineers. The shadow box effect and 3-dimensional backdrop of a rocky wall along the train and a dark tunnel from which the train appears to be emerging was had painted by the Silver Beach Pizza team’s regular muralist, Reggie Hofferth. She also created the steel-beam-trestle bed on which the locomotive and coal car travel.
Jay Costas told me as I visited during this morning’s installation process that they just felt “it would be cool to have a train up there,” since it was a largely empty, unused space. He was like a kid at Christmas watching Andres put the finishing touches on this morning and hopes everyone will love this new gift to the customers and the community.
Crews from Anchor Signs will paint the gold leaf name and number on the train sometime yet this week to finish off the project which should draw plenty of admiration from Silver Beach fans whether they are train aficionados or not.
So, while Silver Beach is a living gallery of Andres work in an indoor gallery setting, golf fans continue to be treated to the outdoor gallery setting of his skilled handiwork on the 18 custom fine art tee box markers at the Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Club at Harbor Shores as well as works inside and out at the Harbor Shores Club House on Graham Avenue. Those tee markers were a collaboration between Andres and Water Street Glassworks owner Jerry Catania.
Josh is a decidedly talented member of the local arts community, and we’re fortunate that the folks at Silver Beach Pizza keep coming up with ways to showcase his incredible vision and skill right in our midst.
