Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1892-12-20
WAX FIGURE MAKING
THE SLOW CREATION OF HAIR, EYES,
WRINKLES AND PORES.

FeCtiy or 10 BTONiut H WIN tlOtheS-An
Interesting Process.
Nearly every one has at some time seen
n collection of good wax works; PERTAINS at
Abe Eden Musee in New York or at Nina
Tussaud's in London or the Musee Grevin
In Paris. Yet to how many has il occurred
that the making of these figures requires
a very large amount of time, labor. and
artistic skill? The process of making way
figures is much more complicated than
one would at first sight imagine Take
for instance, the group of Lincoln Iiberat.
ing the negroes.
? Suppose such a group has been decided
upon and the general Arrangement alab-
GRATED, perhaps with the aid of some pencil
sketches. Then the first step is to model
the figures in clay, which is very necessary
in order that the presence of the BODY NAV
be felt under the clothes, which otherwise
as in poor wax understandable and fan
around the body in most unnatural way.
The first class museum keeps a regular
sculptor, usually very clever artist, who
works on salary and is kept busy enough
in large and well appointed studio. When
he has finished his figure-Abraham Lin
coin in this case-in clay, a plaster mold
Is made. Then it is ready to be Reproduced
m wax-that is the head and hands, but
not the body.
Right here we learn a curious fact
Very little of the wax figure" is really
made of wax. The exposed portions of the
body, head and hands are, but those COW
cred by clothes are not. The latter are
made of carton pierre, which consists of
strips OF paper and linen pressed alternate
~ into the plaster mold, the inner side of
the latter being lined in this manner to a
thickness of about a quarter of an inch.
This layer is then pressed down by a thin
coating Of plaster, and when the carton
thus formed is dry and ready to be taken
ont 1t is as hard as stone. II Indians, Al
means or other savages are to appear in a
group their lightly clad bodies are cast in
plaster, painted over with the color Of their
dusky skins.
But TO return TO wax work proper. Pres
ldent Lincoln's body, we see, is being re-
produced in carton as rapidly as the lively
plump Frenchwoman to whom the work
Is Entrusted can get the paper and linen
into the mold The mold Of the head
meanwhile goes to the room Of the wax
worker or cirier, as he is called, for the
French produce the cleverest work in this
line. Here it is filed with hot wax, and
when the wax nearest the ontsida -,
cooled and hardened. clinoinp IN the mn
side of the mold. the resi- Still var, -
poured off. 40 that the way head Ia hoIlo,,,
when it is taken ont Of the mold
IL would be difIicult at this STAG. q, AZ
cover much resemblance IN presiden, IN
coin. for the bead-hairless .veIos,s a,d
oolorless-looks exceedingly o,bastIy 7,
Is now that the cirier must show bis sLiiI
and nut the apnearance ~ Iife mt 80,
corpselike face His tools arc 81 ,bo -,
plest-a spatula and some bInnts,, noadIas
set in small pieces of wood or matcbes,-
bat with these he works wonders Hair
and beard, eyelashes and eyebrous are first
mt on. a most laborions tast for in a caras
fully and well made head each indiv;dnsI
hair is pushed into the way Win tha
needle.
After this a hole is puncbed tb,o,ob
each eve and a ball set on the end ~ a
carved rod 40 that IL will mass mt tha
head from below. is heated and nressad
nQainst the eve from the inside rbis Nc.
duces a hollow into which glass ewes a..
set. Finally the heated snatula is nsed 10
trace wrinkles and crows feet nro.luce
pimples, and the cracks in the Inns and 10
form teeth and tongue IL the month an.
pears half open. The pores in the SIX in ara
produced by drawing lines on the facs
across each other by means of a pnmber of
blunt neeiles set in a wooden handle The
shaven portions of the face are well indi.
Gated by dots of color pushed in with the
needle. while for a bristiy heard Of ,acept
growth short hairs are used Lastly the
lips are covered with colored way teeth
tongue and finger nails being indicated in
the same way.
So we see that there is work enonob in
the mere making of a wax fippre and that
the work increases in pronortion ,s more
care and artistic skill is employed. Firth
ermore. when a large group is To he made
ike that of Columbus before Ferdinand
and Isabella at the Eden Musee-the com. |
position that il the relative nosition of tba
various figures) has to be carefully con.
sidered. For this purpose pencil sketches
are first made. and these are USUALLY re-
peated in a CLAW sketch. that is. a small |
bas-relief in CLAW. This though ropgb in
execution. "blocked ont, as the sculnto,
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