St Francis Brothers Fired Clay

Plaster mold making is a skilled craft all its own.  Many artist prefer to pass this on to trades persons rather than tackling the complicated and time consuming task.  For me, I see this as a challenge, and besides, I’m a bit of a control freak.  Maybe I’ve got trust issue, but I don’t want anyone else handling my statue. Michelangelo had originally hired the services of a foundry to cast and pour  his larger than life bronze statue of Pope Julius II.  Complaining that the quality was so poor, that far more time was spent correcting the pocked marked and pitted surface than if he had thrown it away and started over from scratch.   I’m sure quality control has improved much since the Renaissance…  But still, I like to be hands on.

As with all my other statues, each mold is unique and requires on-the-spot adjustments… ‘Brothers’ will need a spray foam top to ensure it lays flat within the tipping box. Continue reading