I had a wonderful visit to Newark and Granville, Ohio, last week. Gib and Lou Reese, who have donated many of my sculptures to the community and to the Ohio State University at Newark, were being recognized for their generousity. There was also a huge Art Gala event at the Reese Center located on the campus to celebrate Art in Public Places in Licking County. So many wonderful people were involved to have me and Paul fly out there to  participate in this event. I was honored to be able to speak to an audience regarding my art; how I create and develop my sculptures and where my inspiration comes from. I was also priviledged to speak at the Gala that evening for just a few minutes.

We met so many nice and phenomenal people and I must say thanks to Marcia and Johnathan Downes, Jill and Paul Griesse, Carol Salome, who has discovered a new state she calls “Udaho”, Jane Simmons, and Gib and Lou Reese. I apologize if I left anyone out.

We also were able to participate in a dedication of the courtyard at The Works, a discovery center for children. The Reese’s helped turn a gravel pit into a functional courtyard, complete with mature trees, a fountain, which Lou designed herself, and they have placed my Journeys of the Imagination sculpture. It is one cool place and the kids are so lucky to have it there in Newark! 

I was blown away with the community and the feeling of giving that resides there. I wish I could capture what we felt and bring it to every city and town across the country. I believe if we all had the giving and caring spirit that resides in Licking County, our country would heal any wound and we would draw closer together as the human race.

Our office guy who keeps our blog running was hit by a car while riding his bike and has been out for a while, but he is back now so we can update what’s happening with Mark.

As last we saw, Little Dave had just poured wax into the mold and now we have a hollow wax copy of the sculpture. Dave then goes over the wax with small tools, almost like dental tools, to get rid of the seam and fill in any bubbles that may have formed from pouring the wax. He then attaches wax sprues to the piece which will act as feeders for the bronze when it gets poured. Finally, a big wax cup is added.

The wax is then taken into the slurry room. Sergio dips the whole wax into slurry, which is like a liquid ceramic that has binder solids in it. He makes sure that it is completely covered and that there are no bubbles. He lets the slurry run off then covers the whole piece with sand and sets it in front of big fans so it will dry. Sergio will dip the piece about 7 times, adding sand and letting it dry after each dip. Once the shell is thick enough, he grinds off the bottom of the cup then takes it to an autoclave, which is like a huge steam pressure cooker. The wax melts out and now we have a shell ready to have the bronze poured into it.

The shell is heated to about 1900 degrees and the bronze is melted at around 2100 degrees. Our guys have to wear special clothing because it is so HOT and we don’t want them to melt. They pour the bronze into the shell then let it cool. Once it has cooled, the shell is broken off and you have this section of bronze. Each piece will have to go through the same process. So, once we have all the pieces of Mark and the bench poured up in metal, we will take pictures of our metal guy welding it together.

Tell us what you think about the process and if this makes any sense!

Dan has been adding clay to the foam and getting the sculpture looking real good. It’s very close to being finished. How did Dan get up so high to work on the little girl (he’s not real tall)?! How do you think it looks? Please let me know.

It’s now time to make a wax copy of the sculpture. Little Dave has heated up the mold with a hairdryer (so the wax will pour a little smoother) then slowly pours wax in the mold. He rolls it around making sure to cover all the rubber then dumps it out. Dave lets it cool for a few minutes then pours in a second coat. After that coat has cooled he does a third. After the third coat has completely cooled Dave takes apart the plaster mother-mold, then slowly and carefully peels the rubber off the wax. And there you have a wax copy of the clay! Dave will hand the wax over to the waxchasers who will get rid of the seams, fix any bubbles or any other problems. We’ll show that in the next day or two.

One of the most frustrating things that we encounter is seeing knock-off sculptures. These “bronzes”, and I use that term loosely, are copies of other artist’s works that are created overseas, then are sold, most time over the internet, for extremely low prices. There are a couple ways to identify these sculptures: First, the patina, or finish, usually has the same look on all of these pieces- a slick, brown lacquer on the skin then a greenish-blue color on the shirts, dresses, or other parts of clothing. Seeing this patina is usually a dead giveaway that the sculpture is a knock-off. Second, the quality of the sculptures are usually pretty bad, both the sculpting and the metal work. I know that every artist has their own technique and styles, but knock-offs tend to look pretty bad. Third, the price of knock-offs are extremely low. To give an example of how low they are, our Circle of Peace sculpture of 7 children holding hands in a circle, sells for $99,000 where the knock-off copy of this piece sold for under $10,000. This also let’s you know that these sculptures are created from, what we call, Mystery Metal. Bronze is a semi-precious metal and is quite expensive and the cost of metal, if it were bronze, would be more than the price of the knock-off sculpture! We have had people bring to our foundry their knock-off sculptures, not realizing that is what they have, for repairs and when our metal workers have tried to weld them, they puddle and can’t be fixed.

We have had to take some of these places that sell these bronzes to court for copyright infringement.

When you are looking for a bronze sculpture, make sure you are getting a real bronze from a reputable artist or gallery to ensure that you will be making a smart purchase and investing your money wisely. Let me know your thoughts or tell me your experiences with purchasing sculptures.

Our buddy Dan has finished welding the armature and has cut and glued foam to the armature to build up some mass and create a little shape. Dan now is using his utility knife to shave and somewhat sculpt the foam to the point so he can start adding the clay. Careful with that knife, Dan! I need you to keep your fingers!

Dan has made it back from his vacation to Orcas Island, WA and has started to point up the Flight Time Sisters. He begins again by welding together the armature. The armature is an infrastructure that will give stability to the sculpture and acts as a skeleton to the sculpture.

Once he has finished welding the armature he will add the foam board. Please follow along as we document the creation of this sculpture. As always, we look forward to any comments you may have!

Sammy has finished coating the sculpture with rubber. He had to coat the whole thing, let it set up, then mix another batch and apply another coat. He has had to do that six times. Along the way Sam built up thick seams where the rubber will be cut apart.

The rubber has completely set up, so now Sam has started creating the plaster “Mother Mold”. The plaster will help keep the mold together when its time time to pour the wax, but we will show that when the time comes. Sam has a Rubbermaid tub that he puts some water in, along with a wee bit of retardant that will keep the plaster from setting up too quick, then ads the plaster. He mixes it with his hands, making sure to get rid of all the lumps. Clumps of hemp are used to give the plaster support. Sam starts by making a plaster “sausage” that will go all along the edge. Then he makes a “patty” that will fill in the big sections. After getting all the sausage and patties on, he smooths the plaster over with his hands and uses a metal tool to smooth the edges. Once all the plaster is done, we will take more pictures.

We welcome any comments you may have about what we’re doing.

Gary put his finishing touches on Mark, signed and dated it, and it is ready to be molded. To make the molds and the casting process easier, Sam cuts parts of the sculpture off with a saws-all. These pieces are set onto turntables and rubber will be applied. Metal shims are stuck into the clay, which are used to separate the different sections of the mold. 

Sammy then mixes the silicon rubber; note that it starts off white, then the catalyst is added, which is blue, that causes the rubber to set up.  We’ve discovered our favorite way to mix the rubber is with an electric drill and a beater. After the rubber has been mixed and the air bubbles removed, Sam applies the rubber with a hog hair brush, working it in to the texture and making sure rubber covers every part of the clay. The first coat of rubber is very thin to capture all the detail. The rubber will take a number of hours to set up, at which time another coat will be applied. It is a long process, but a good mold can be used for years and many, many castings.

This, my latest, was created for the inspiration and enjoyment of kids. Those mystical and magical symbols of wisdom, long life, and happiness have forever fascinated children of all ages. This particular dragon willingly shares his treasures of knowledge- his collections of anthologies and wisdom of the ages with his young admirers. He even provides a quick seat with his tail as he looks forward to a cozy read with his friends. Come and join in the storytelling!

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