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Bronzes
bronzes have expensive price especially when you are talking about sculptures. For hundreds of years bronze sculptures have been the one of the most popular metal artwork for collectors. This is mainly attributed to the excellent properties of bronzes when put into casts. When a bronze is set in a mold, the metal alloy usually expands a bit allowing it fill in even the tiniest detail. If you will notice, bronze sculptures have more defined features as compared to other similar metal arts. A lot of prehistoric bronze statues still survive to this day simply because a bronze is more durable than other materials used for sculpting and they are also malleable making it easy for crafting.
The metal alloy used in bronze sculpting remained the same over the years with a combination of ninety percent copper and ten percent tin. Based on history, the ancient Greeks were among the first to utilize bronze in creating lifelike statues. One of the historic bronze sculptures that still survive up to this day is known as 'The Victorious Athlete'.
Creating statues and figurines out of bronzes require talents and skills. The malleable properties of bronze allow sculptures to create complicated and intricate designs with their creations as compared to other sculpting medium like stones where it is very hard to really imitate complex designs. The method for creating a masterpiece out of bronze is very time consuming since it requires several steps before the actual piece is created. To start with, the bronze artist first put his design either in wood, clay, or other materials to create a cast.
When the design is finished, the artist will then make a rubber mold using the design he created out of wood or clay. The finished mold will be used to create a wax figure where the artist can further improve the intricate details. When the mold is finished, a cast has to be created where molten bronze will be poured.
The wax figure will be covered with a type of ceramic solution and then coated with sand before heating it to further strengthen the mold. The wax inside will be melted leaving the impression on the sand mold. When this step is completed, the molten bronze is now ready to be poured in to take the shape of the mold. And since bronzes have the capacity to expand when setting in, all the fine details will be covered leaving a skillfully crafted figure when the mold is broken.
After the bronze cooled down inside the mold, the cast will be opened to reveal the figure inside. The next job of the artist is to refine the figure either by sandblasting it or manually polishing it or both. A patina is often applied on the surface to imitate an aged appearance which is only unique with old bronzes. Bronze sculptures come in first edition and second editions depending on when the mold was first used. It is important to make sure you are buying the original so always look for the certificate of authenticity before buying any bronze sculptures.
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