The Van Buren press. [volume] (Van Buren, Ark.) 1859-1914, 1897-06-26
THE MAKING OF a sr,e,,-
~
The Science of Mechanics D..
Into the Service az ssel

Into the Service ef Art d
When we look upon a finished No.,
statue, says an expert, we rarely th ~
OF the time and labor that nave baaA
expended upon it. First, model sa a
be made; but even preliminary faas
the sculptor puts his ideas in the fo~
of Il rough sketch" in clay or wax .u
eording to the delicacy required IT,
the main points are rapidly noIdad ~
and some idea is obtained of h,,l. th
statue will look when it is finished
passing thought, an idea, is in th;v a.,
fixed, and is more carefully worked ~
in the model. As rule, the first mod,
is small, and is of clay or way a~a
at first consists of nucleus of toy, ~
s<me such material, ON which the o,s'
is las Bit by bit it is built I'M mia
by trimming and adding, fatteninpan and
rounding off, the figure comes ia aa
sumo its proper proportions. The rongN
outlines of the sketch are deyelonel
new ideas are added, others are altara1
and by degrees the realization Of II.
sculptor's thoughts begins to apnea,
In the clay.
In the actual manipulation great cara
must be taken that the clay is Of tbe
proper eonsistenee and possesses tbs
requisite amount of moisture. otherwise
ii may become dry and crack. still
more serious accident is where the CLAW
c.umbles to pieces. In this way tba
labor of months may in few minute,
vanish into mass of Getlris, an ey.
perience which many seIlptors baye
had. To guard against this the clap
mus, from time to tirle re moistened
and when work is fiEillisl for the day
the model mus. be yl'tfully covered
with damp cloths. In this way acct.
dents may be prevented. When large
models have to be made, extra preeat
items must be taken against dryirg
Tie nucleus must be made strong. Of
iron rods along the lines where tfierO
is least support, as in the case of out,
stretched arms or legs, and the rods
must be properly fixed in stable basis
At first the figures are modelled nude
and full regard is paid to all the an
atomical details. The drapery is added
afterward, from studies arranged on
clay figures.
When the model is finished according
to the taste of the sculptor a second
one is made of the exact size intended
for the final piece of work. Where the
statue is to be made of bronze the full.
sized model is an absolute necessity. as
the casting in bronze is made from the
model, and ii reproduces the latter in
every detail. Where the statue is Ia
be of marble the final model need not
necessarily be full size. and many
sculptors prefer working from small
ighly-finished models. Uusally, how
ever a full-sized model is made in clay.
The sculptor can still alter or modify
his original design, bringing certain
features into greater prominence, sub.
DUNG others. When the model is fin.
ished east of it is taken in plaster.
and this latter is used as the final
model, and with it as a guide the block
of marble is carved by skilled work.
men. This is an art which has been
carried to high degree of perfection
in Italy, and The Norkmen of Carrara
are famous. The sculptor makes his
model in clay and takes plaster cast
| and then sends it to the works in Car
rara, where it is chiseled and then re
turned to him for tie final touches.
After the choice of a suitable bloch
| of stone, most important piece o.
work has to be done, namely, the mark
ing of certain points on the plaster cast
| and the determination of similar points
in the marble. Various methods and
instruments have been recommended
for this purpose. In practice divided
| frame is used, and the exact distance
of certain marked points on the plaster
| cast is accurately measured. Fixed
| points on the stone are marked, and
from these the otser points are meas
urcd with instruments, and the depth
| to which the stone must be cut OF
| drilled is determined with great ac-
curacy. In this way all prominent
points are marked cut, and holes are
drilled to the required depth and the
intervening marble chiseled away, at
first roughly, then with greater and
| greater care, till the marble begins to
assume its finished shape. In the
larger sculpture works one man does
| the marking, another the rough cbisel
ing, another the fine work. Finally @
stage is reached when it again passes
into the hands of the sculptor himself
and he it is who puts the lines of genius
| into it with his fine instruments. Al
though the workers i'm Carrara are
clever, they seldom are gifted enough
to supply the finishing touches which
| give the characteristics of the great
sculptors themselyes.-N. Y. Tribune,
| LIFE IN THE PARIS CATACOMBS
Creatures That Thrive I'm subtcrra.