Mario Tribuzio comes right over, strolling past mythic gods and legendary heroes, pensive martyrs and joyful Buddhas, dolphins, lighthouses, knights and spouting fountains.
Since 1966, the 81-year-old Rocky Point resident has been selling statuary right from this very spot on Route 25A at Rocky Point Statuary. Across the street from where he lives, a home naturally adorned with his works of art.
From molds-some that he designed himself from scratch-Tribuzio produces the concrete statues, the type that decorate the yards of suburban homes all over Long Island.
Bird baths, fountains and religious statuary-like the ubiquitous Mary in a grotto-are among his best sellers.
Inside a wooden shed, hidden from view from the road behind what Tribuzio estimates are more than 500 statues is the workshop where the objects are produced individually by hand.
Sound Beach resident Chris Conway has been working for Rocky Point Statuary for the last five years. He says the work is delicate. It's more than just filling molds with concrete.
"You have to make sure there's no air," he said while taking a break from making a Buddha statue.
According to another employee, Charlie Fontana, who Tribuzio calls "the brains of the outfit," the business used to sell the statues wholesale but now they just mostly sell to homeowners.
He estimates that they sell between 200 and 300 statues per year. The spring and early summer are their busy seasons, said Fontana.
When pressed, Tribuzio will tell you that one of his favorite original creations is a lighthouse he designed. Although he'd also tell you about ten other "favorites" of his. Like children, it seems hard for him to pick just one.
"There's something here for everyone," he says.
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