BUTLER, Penn. – Local artist Bill Secunda not only called Donald Trump “tough” after the former president fended off an assassination attempt here, but also created a life-size sculpture to reinforce the phrase.
Secunda was so inspired by Trump’s actions, which saw him defiantly raise his fist and tell protesters to “fight, fight, fight” after he was grazed by an assassin’s bullet, that he built a one-of-a-kind likeness of the former president out of nails. Secunda unveiled the statue on Saturday at the Butler Farm Show, the same site where the fatal shooting took place on July 13.
“I tried to convey to him the phrase ‘Let’s fight,’ but let’s do it non-violently. Let’s do it right,” Secunda told Fox News Digital in his garage studio.
Like many other Americans, Secunda was thrilled to see Trump raise his fist in the air and Secret Service agents carry him to safety seconds after gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks shot him in the ear.
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Butler artist Bill Secunda stands in front of his nail-based structure of former President Trump. (Michael Dorgan/Fox News Digital)
His carefully curated installation – consisting of about 4,000 twisted and bent metal nails – shows Trump in a bright navy suit with his arm raised.
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“I tried to give him that look of determination,” Secunda said. “When he was shot, a lot of people in Butler didn’t run away. They were upset, but they wanted to stay there and make sure he was OK.”
The life-size statue is made of 4,000 twisted and bent metal nails and shows Trump defiantly raising his right fist in the air. (Michael Dorgan/Fox News Digital)
“I hope (the statue) helps people get a little more strength,” he continued. “This guy is tough, he’s strong. You know, maybe we need to be a little stronger. This is a pretty tough time for our country and I hope it helps. People were upset that it happened here and I think they’re even more upset that it happened at all.”
The 1.90-meter-tall sculpture is made entirely of traditional flat-headed nails, which Secunda says are usually driven into concrete. It’s a technique Secunda often uses in his artwork.
““I first build a framework and then start welding each nail. Many need to be heated and bent into the right position,” Secunda said of his nail-based structures, many of which adorn his sprawling garden, including a life-sized moose. He has created many other life-sized animals during his 30-year career, including a bear, a bison and a lion, while other installations include a giant wooden tin man that sits imposingly on his property.
“The hair was a lot of fun,” Secunda says in his piece about Trump’s iconic hairstyle. “I did a lot of research on his ears and his hair. Once I had it shaped properly, I used a soldering rod and welded it there to give it the yellow finish.”
He says the Trump building is his first politically motivated creation, although he has also created two giant statues of Jesus Christ on the cross.
Secunda’s Trump statue is on display at the Butler Farm Show. (Bill Secunda)
Secunda got a head start on his latest project. In 2020, he created a sculpture depicting Trump ripping open his shirt like Superman, revealing a gold-colored letter “T.” After the assassination, his cousin suggested redesigning the sculpture to reflect the shooting, so Secunda went back to work.
He removed Trump’s right arm and then welded it back together to show him now with a clenched fist. He removed the “T” on his chest, redesigned the shirt and chest area, and finally burned a hole in his right ear to represent the bullet that struck it.
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Secunda says he turned down an offer to sell the original piece at the time because he longed to one day proudly show Trump his work. Now he hopes that when the former president returns to Butler for another campaign event – as he has hinted at – he will finally get that opportunity after all these years.
“I turned down a sale a long time ago just to see if I could show it (Trump). After all these years… I might have had it left to improve… This is a much better message.”
The lettering “tough as nails” is written on the base of the structure. (Michael Dorgan/Fox News Digital)
