Making a Bronze

Making a Bronze Sculpture
The making of a bronze sculpture involves months of hard work. From left to right, these photos give a brief illustration of the process.

After appoval by McKendree University of my small clay "sketch", my work began with building an "armature" (skeletal support) for the large clay figure that I would build.

When the clay was finished, the figure had to be divided by metal shims into many mold pieces.
Due to unusual circumstances I did the mold making and wax making myself.

First a silicone mold material was painted directly onto the sculpture. When that was thick enough, I made a "mother" mold of plaster and hemp to support the silicone mold pieces.

When finished, the pieces were removed and a wax casting was made of each mold piece. These were repaired and taken to the foundry, Heartland Bronze, in Lawrence, Kansas. Bronze is cast by an ancient method called the "lost wax" process.

VMD Sculpting in St. Louis, MO helped with the wax making and completed the many final steps of welding the bronze pieces together, refinishing the surface, patina, and installation. Dr. James Dennis, President of McKendree University, gave the final approval before installation in June 2009.

Email: julie@jsesti.com