Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-12-13
MAKING WAX FIGURES.
Through the Boiling Pot, the Mold n
the Eye and Hair Artists.

Through the Boiling Pot, the Mold and
the Eye and Hair Artists.
A smiling young lady seated at piano in
q large show window on State street at
tracted crowds last week. She was pretty
enough to catch the masculine eye and sufi-
GENTLY well dressed to hold the feminine
critics. But, despite the constant scrutiny
Of the ever changing crowd. the young lady
never changed her position. The smile that
parted her lips did not change, her fingers,
raised an inch above the piano, never struck
them once-all for the best OF reasons She
wasn't real young lady-though she looked
1t, especially in the gaslighr-but only wax
one A young man curious to know some
thing Of the method of her construction
climbed up TO the top story of the Eden Musee
in company with the superintendent. emery
ing into a small room in the rear of the
building. Two or three men were at work,
one stirring steaming mixture in an iron
pot over an oil stove, another daubing plaster
over a mold Feadless corpses were every
where. They stood on platforms, under
meath tables and in corners In small ante
room whole collection was piled up. The
limbs OF some were contorted and bent a
though in awful agony The active young
superintendent opened boxes and cupboards
and drew out heads of men and women, old
and young, beautiful and ugly, some without
eyes or hair, others looking startlingly real.
From another set of drawers he pulled dozens
of hands and laid them beside the heads
There" said he, ARE all the parts of an
image which are made ont of wax There is
Oh a
the torsos-are made out of papier msche.
A wax torso, even when it is lined with an
iron framework, does not give a satisfactory
effect The process OF making the papier
mache bodies is precisely that of the heads
and hands"
And what Is thatf''
"a work that requires seven persons to
complete. The first step is to make minia-
ture model in CLAY of the figure or group that
is TO be represented From it we get some
| idea of the effect When all details are de
cided upon the sculptor models the figure
| life size in clay, the same as would be done
| if it were to be chiseled in marble or cast in
| bronze. The hands are omitted They are
modelled from life always Next the moldel
| prepares plaster paris cast in sections from
| the model. and into this the wax is poured by
| the waxworker If the result does not sat
I isfy the sculptor the head is remelted NJ
| attempt is ever made to change a head. tn,
mold is simply broken W and new mode
made. The head goes next TO a woman, whc
inserts the hair, eyebrows, eyelashes, anC
beard A little instrument with two or thre,
sharp needle points is used for this Sh
works rapidly, more so than any of the 9th
ers. The sculptor, after the glass eyes ar
put into the socket, then takes the head ant
finishes it Its color is male pink, and h
gives it the hue of the human face, and b,
various means makes its surface look lik
skin Meanwhile the costurner hiss been a
work dressing the torso and the carpente
fixing it upon a pedestal The head an.
hands are joined to it and it is ready for Ell
hibition"
"How long does all this takeE'
SIT depends upon the sculptor entirely
Figures nowadays are mostly portraits, an,
in modelling one, especially OF a contemporar-
individual, the 7culptor is likely to make hal
dozen models before the correct one is hi,
The figure of Thurman. for instance, re
quired great deal OF preliminary study
The sculptor had to see him several times, t
observe most closely various details, such a
the expression of his face in varying moods
the size of his bead, color Of his eves-can an
man tell the color of his nearest friend's eyes
the way his hair was arranged, his weight
carriage, etc. Little details, such as the ea1
occupy the artist day sometimes He car
not be hurried, Sometimes two weeks is re
quired to model single figure. No, sculr
tors rarely model direct from life, except i
the case of the hands, although instances ar
known Of their having done so. They prefe
photograph and rely upon their memorie
for details in making head BIT they a
wavs mold hands from hfe No artist in til
world can exactly represent that wonderfr
human member, with ell its thousand line
creases and its expressions-for the hand
have expressions. Figures cost as high 9
$500 The hair ON the bead of the figure {
Mrs Langtry cost s75 Hair is always a
important and expensive item So is tt
costume. Chicago Tribune.