How was it made? Lost-wax bronze casting | V&A

See the process involved in casting a bronze figure - from the creation of a wax model through to the final sculpture.
Find out more about sculpture: www.vam.ac.uk/...

[@killiansirishbeer]

I never understood how bronze statues were made and it bothered me so thank you for this video and the animations 👍

[@annettefournier9655]

Thank you. I never knew how labor intensive this was!

[@athenaartfoundation]

It's staggering, right!

[@oliviar9073]

This used to be my job before the pandemic. Watching this gave me flash backs.

[@user-ef1qy9zq1g]

I hope you’re doing well now! Hopefully you’ve recovered your job?

[@diegozarate7664]

Hello! Im just getting into casting and have a question regarding the pins. Are they steel? Do you think i could get away with using nails from the hardware store for the pins? Thank you so much and hope you are well!

[@user-lj7wh7hy6c]

I’m so sorry to hear that. Same. Almost closed down the shop but we’re back and limping along with all the inflation. I hope you’re doing better.

[@user-lj7wh7hy6c]

@@diegozarate7664 Hi, sorry I’m not that person just a bronze casting assistant from LA. This probably doesn’t help you at all, I’ve never done this technique and I don’t know your set up but I’ve worked 3 different foundries and modern professionals break the piece up into segments, gate it, and dip the piece into a slurry tank and immediately coat it in fine zircon sand, then multiple layers of increasingly coarse silicone sand. Usually about 9 layers and this forms around the piece and locks it in place so there is no need for pins. We do it in pieces because doing a solid piece creates too much distortion from trapped air. It will warp the piece and cause severe pitting in the surface. It’s just less that can go wrong and you get better castings. Sorry if that’s completely irrelevant. Good luck!

[@BarbieCastroConcordFilms]

Wow! this is amazing. So much work. I have a new found appreciation for bronze figures and sculptures. Thank you 🙏

[@angelabenitiz7241]

Thank you for showing what happens on the inside (why the wax is "lost"). Super helpful and easy to understand video 🥰

[@Sunshine-zm1fx]

This truly explains the technique beautifully. Well done. Well done.

[@athenaartfoundation]

Brilliant video - the number of stages is mind-blowing!

[@sherwin1988]

This channel is so underated....

[@debraball2641]

Thank you. I'm an art teacher. This was very informative.

[@simoneleone]

A crazy amount of work. Artists are the best. Thank you for this!

[@MicaFarrierRheayan]

Superbly meticulous workaround of art pieces, back then. Truly wonderful

[@tangstudiodotnet]

Jeeze this is a lot of work, thought it was simpler. Thanks

[@eclectictraveller]

I had heard of this process but, until now, I had no idea what was involved , thank you.

[@aarenmyatt4509]

The part that stumped me was how they were made hollow. Now I know thank you. Amazing that this process was done by the ancient greeks. 😮

[@miltong.1826]

this video was sick watching it for a college course good eye professor 10/10

[@IronLungProductionsOfficial]

holy smokes alot more went into that than I ever Imagined!

[@beefsoda1]

Fascinating

[@tastemountains6704]

This was so crazy fun to watch thanks so much I’d love to learn how to make this haha

[@domytar5395]

That’s really good mate.

[@ThatSentinel]

Truly amazing.

[@jonasdominguezrodriguez1143]

Just amazing ❤

[@Marina.Kudrevskaya]

this is amazing, thank you for sharing this

[@edwassermann8368]

wow. this is incredible.

[@mahel2002]

How long does this take from start to finish? I can imagine that for a life-size statue, that must have taken weeks (and I know that they could be assembled from different parts), but what about a small statue like the one in the video? Thank you for your reply!

[@capuchinosofia4771]

Id wager around two weeks if you put your heart into it.

[@mahel2002]

@@capuchinosofia4771 thank you

[@louis1952]

Thanks, very well presented.

[@FreedomLovingLoyalistOfficial]

I would love to do this myself.

[@makingcookingfixing]

Does anyone know if they leave the investment inside the bronze piece? Because now that would be hard, and from the feet I don’t see enough entry to scratch it out

[@olebrgesen795]

The statue core can also be made of clay and not wax. In this case we often see traces of the clay inside the statue.

[@MrMittens1974]

The core inside the bronze statue is not made of wax but refractory capable plaster. If it was wax the bronze would melt it and mess up the core and casting.

[@olebrgesen795]

@@MrMittens1974 - no, the core was usually in clay, don’t melt in the heating process. The outer layer around the clay in wax of course.

[@80cardcolumn]

I was wondering how you removed the sand and plaster core (created at 1:29) after the metal was cast. Answer: You don't.

[@BilliePosters]

@@80cardcolumn i know ridiculous - much better to break the piece up into parts cast separately using a ceramic shell, in thinner pieces and weld back together hollow

[@capuchinosofia4771]

@@BilliePosters yeah, that or planning a "hole" with the plaster/clay core at the base so, once its bronce, you may clean the clay out.

[@camsshaft]

Did some of this in high-school. Inspiring me to revisit this! Thank you!

[@B4IRUTUARU16]

Absolutely stunning

[@pauls5745]

the Greeks would be proud!

[@jonswanson7766]

Great comment The Greeks, the greatest people who ever lived would certainly admire Giambologna!

[@eldebtor6973]

this answers everything .. thank you ..

[@lundgrenbronzestudios]

I just made one but I used a different method. You seem to really have a system down and know what your doing.

[@nemod3338]

It's Victoria and Albert museum, sure they know what they do.

[@scottgray6276]

When casting the wax replicas, is the plaster mold wet, or dry,, and if it's dry, is there a mold release?

[@pauls5745]

dry plaster for a day or 3 at room temp or a few hours in heat. it must be dry. no mold release; wax runs out by gravity and the heat will burn any residue out but possible some soot remains tho it doesn't matter. plenty of vids on lost wax or lost PLA and investment casting

[@countesscable]

Wow! What was the background music? It was ethereal

[@TillieElaine]

That’s a lot of work

[@subcommandertal7450]

Fascinating! Now tell me what this music was in the background, please!

[@toddmccabe4122]

You seldom see a modern craftsman who can equal the old masters. Whoever sculpted this, bravo! No easy feat. It could stand next to other Flemish and Dutch mannerist masterpieces without any suspicion of modernity.

[@hiyamoki]

What plaster is used in this process? Everything I have seen is for much lower temperatures than molten bronze.

[@FahrulRozi-cu1rr]

Terimakasih 😊

[@duykhoaDN]

Important thing is how to make the wax modal in the first place

[@arckocsog253]

Why do you have to recreate the vax model? Why not make the cast around the original?

[@JustinJFain]

Multiple castings can be made from the same master since it is only used to make the initial plaster cast. Also, the plaster core means that this process uses much less metal than doing it in solid bronze like what was done for sword castings and the like.

[@arckocsog253]

@@JustinJFain Thank you for the info!

[@harshpagare6286]

Can anyone tell me what happens to the core inside...is it left like that

[@MrStu1962]

So fab

[@lurereviews5164]

So it's bronze covered plaster?

[@camimiller6168]

I know it's called hollow casting, I just don't understand what happens to the material they pour in to the hollow wax. Would that not then still be inside of of the "hollow" bronze?

[@teumessia8492]

Yea it would. The statue is only hollow in the sense that it’s not made of bronze through and through. Making the core out of plaster is a great way to cut costs. Also, if it were completely hollow it would get dented very easily.

[@fritzki1]

I want to learn how to do this. Where does one start?? Who is the artist in the video?

[@igbnadiwindu6164]

Wow!!!

[@anasepulveda5599]

Anybody knows the name of the sculpture? I suppose it´s a copy from Rodin, but what is the of the artwork? Thanks

[@jonswanson7766]

It is the work of Giambologna, Ares or Latin Mars The version in the Quentin collection is the finest sculpture ever made. My opinion.

[@h7opolo]

well done

[@525Lines]

How does the sand inside the wax figure retain its shape?

[@yashasvihanda6516]

What is that smoothening tool called ? 4:00

[@Tamizhan_Om]

Thanks for showing chola bronze making method to the world

[@soglabel]

Why not just put the first wax model inside a plaster cast?

[@bilgaissa5831]

Can we use bees wax

[@m.m.375]

Thank you for posting this. Can you please list the music used in this video?

[@danielmclean3991]

How did people figure this out thousands of years ago

[@sujeto028]

Does anyone know the name of the model?

[@jonswanson7766]

Ares or Latin Mars

[@Vlow52]

That’s a complicated and lost 3d printer if the ancient past

[@paulwl3159]

Apparently 3D printing has a long way to go to achieve the level of intricate detail required for fine art

[@molitovv]

Could you take a 3D scan so we can print our own please?

[@pauls5745]

and take out the artistic creativity? why not just buy a statue then lol

[@svfreakitiki]

Why would you core a statue like that? Just to cut down on weight?

[@princevesperal]

Not only weight, I reckon, but also cost. There is no point in using metal in the core of the statue. This is a relatively small piece, but volume goes up really fast thanks to the cubic rule: if you made that statue twice bigger, it would take up eight times more metal to fill it up. Make it ten times bigger, and it would require one thousand times more metal! V = c³

[@Strawdozz]

@@princevesperal Thats true but thats not why they do it. Bronze cracks when cast with depth more than a cm or so. So even if you dont care about cost of material, its a necessity to hollow out.

[@Earthling327]

👍👍👍lol

[@Neuman357]

Heheh… wax rod.

[@operaguy1]

Ruined by ominous low tone. STOP DOING THAT

[@phillyspecial1393]

Dewar and deshell are the worst

[@woofguy]

Boring

[@jagboy69]

regurgitated old video. :-/

[@BilliePosters]

so they just leave the plaster core inside the thing?