Artist: Harry Marinsky
Year: 1994
Dates: b.1909, London, England – 2008, Italy
Materials: Bronze
Dimensions: 6′ x 10′ x 6′
Series: Alice In Wonderland

About The Process

This piece is one of seven in the “Alice in Wonderland” series by Marinsky. The artist utilized the lost wax process to cast these bronze sculptures. It begins with an original sculpted model made by the artist in either wax or clay. A mold is made from this original by coating the model in liquid rubber. Coats of hot wax are painted onto sections of the mold to capture detail and then wax is poured into the mold. When the wax is thick enough, the excess wax is poured out. The rubber mold is removed and the hollow wax replica of the original remains. It is then covered in clay to create an encasement or a ceramic shell. Each wax section is dipped into ceramic slurry and then dipped into a bed of fine sand. The wax is then melted out of the ceramic shell or clay encasement in a kiln or autoclave. After the shells are removed from the kiln, crucibles are used to hoist the molten metal, which is poured into shells. Once the metal has cooled, the shell is removed and the bronze sections are welded together to form a sculptural whole. The surface is ground, sanded, and hammered to recreate the original texture. This is called the chasing process. After the piece is chased, a patina may be added to the bronze using a variety of chemical reactions.