I may cast the maquette into bronze, to be sold as a limited edition. A more unusual process, and only applicable for lower melting point alloys, the process is more expensive. This is put onto a simple wire armature, and built up and modelled until I am happy and ready to send it to the foundry or work from when scaling up for a larger work. Plaster Mould Casting Cast Metals Federation News Jobs Members Area Similar to sand casting, the mould is made of Plaster of Paris, rather than sand, and is used when an excellent surface finish and good dimensional accuracy is required. I usually work with a wax (microcrystalline wax, paraffin wax, dye) or plasticene (fine clay powder (ball clay), mixed into melted microcrystalline wax and some petroleum jelly), made myself. From this study I will 'scale-up' for the larger work, making the creation of the armature easier with something accurate to measure from. At this stage changes are easy to make as the armature (skeletal structure) from such a small sculpture (up to 50cm height) is flexible and therefore easily moved about. This is then shown to the client who has commissioned this large work so they may get a good idea of what the final work will look like. When I have an opportunity to create a large sculpture I will create a maquette to learn more about my subject and the pose or structure that the final work will take. In addition, I hope to bring you, the buyer/viewer, closer to an understanding of the true value of a bronze, not only because the artist’s skills required must be studied, accumulated and practised, but because of the length and complexity of the bronze casting process itself and the skills required for this.Ī maquette is essentially a small study for a larger sculpture. I make the originals, and then finish the work on each cast sculpture with the patination (colour, using chemicals) and polish. The process, as you will see, is complex and requires skills with many different materials. I myself do not cast my sculptures but send my wax or plasticene artwork to the foundry. In this part of my website I would like to share with you this amazing process.īronze casting was first used some 5000 years ago, and it has essentially not altered since then – although we now have more refined materials on hand like silicon rubber for detail-catching moulds. The bronze casting process never ceases to excite me! The transformation of my wax or clay sculpture into a beautiful bronze is a fiery miracle. From conception to the final bronze sculpture - The lost wax casting process Bronze sculpture – a fiery miracle
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