The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1904-03-11
MAKING WAX FORMS
SHOW FIGURES FOR SHOPkeePERs
ARE COSTLY AFFAIRS.


they iron feet? To weight them down,
SO that they will stand erect"
lie stood in his workshop, room as
big as a concert hall. All around him
helpers were making legs, heads, hands,
trunks, feet. Floods OF clear light from
the glazed roof fell upon heaps OF
limbs, upon rows OF heads, upon mounds
OF bodies. The place had ghastly
look. Ii rcsembled the scene of mas.
sacrc.
The art OF making show figures, "
said the dealer "has improved" lie
took up in his hand the head OF "A young
girl, The red lips smiled. revealing
white teeth; the brown hair curled
gracefully; the eyes were bright; there
was dmple In the check
~ head like this" he said, lis worth
SIS. Heads range In price from 81 To
$50. They are made of wax; they are
hollow; the eyes are OF glass, and the
hair is human hair. III tell you how
they are made,
"WaX-a great quantity of it's boil
ell I'm "A big kettle until II has the con.
sistency OF water IL is then poured
OF heads, that stand awaiting II. The
molds are hung up and shaken about,
This process causes the wax 10 cool
and 10 adhere In crust to the mold y
inside. The agitation is kept up until
the crust of wax has reached the thick
ness that the operator requires, where.
upon the hot wax. the surplus, is pour
cd back into the kettle. About the
mold, which is made In two halves. n
jacket Is placed, and tho contrivance Ii
put away To dry.
when the drying is complete the
mold Is taken Off, and man goes over
the wax head with n sharp instrument,
clearing out the nostrils and ears and
smoothing away the lines created here
and there by the junction OF the mold y
halves. He also inserts, with n deft
movement, glass eyes In the empty eye
sockets.
Now the head passes To girl, n
girl with II strange sort of needle, the
eye of which IL open, or split, at the
top. The girl first puts on the eye
brows. She threads the needle with n
hair runs IL through the wax and,
Withdrawing IL, leaves the hair behind,
for the needles eye. that IL open ut the
top. makes IL inevitable for the hnii
To stay where ii IL put. The girl works
with great rapldity. In few minutes
she has the head adorned with IA pair
of long and shaggy eyebrows.
Next she puts Oh the hair. For this
work she uses the same sort of needle,
the hair being In every case human.
For the cheaper heads, however, IL IL
Chinese hair. human, but very luster.
less. coarse variety. Beside her stands
n tiny spirit lamp. This she applies 10
the wax when IL becomes so hard that
the needle won't penetrate II easily. Az
soon as she finishes one head she passes
on TO another while the head she laid
down IL taken up by man.
This man cls,nIs IL first with kero
senc. Then he paints II all over Il
pleasant and inviting flesh color He
tints the checks, the ears and the nos
trlls with carminc, and he paints the
lips with rouge. A girl, n professional
hairdrcsscr, now takes the head In
hand, Curts the hair and dresses II
fashionably and applies "A coat Of
French powder to- the face. The head
Is now finished.
Hands and feet are made, as n rule,
Of pnplcr machc, cnamelcd and painted
II flesh color 80 that they look like the
best wax. Hands, feet, bodies, legs
and arms are made In hollow molds."
The dealer led the way 10 the back
Of the shop.
Here" he said "are some men max
Ing forms Of papicr machc now. Watch
them"
The worknen had molds OF various
sizes ana shapes before thcm-one the
mold Of hand, another that OF a foot
third that OF whole figure from the
neck down TO the ankles
Thcse molds were In halves. The pa
pier mache that was TO fll them looked
In it's dry state like blotting paper
Wet IT resembled gray pulp. with this
gray pulp the workmen lined the
mods' interiors well seeing TO IL that
every Granny and nook got It's thick
lining. When the molds were filed
some were In numerous pieces they
were Joined together, covered with
their jackets and put away 10 dry.
The artists cannot protect, cannot
copyright, their work In any way.
Hence they are constantly being preyed
upon by imltators and thieves A deal
or, for Instance, will order an original
head OF a woman from a noted m0k Ter
Of show figures He Will turn out a
masterpiece. The dealer will make n
mold Of II and sell duplicates Of the
head broadcast.
There were In the past only three or
four makers Of show forms In Ameri-
ca. Now there are over 200. The aver
ago workman at this business makes
from $50 to S2J week. The artist Of
great ability makes from so 10 500
thOw forms of the best sort are worth
500 and more apiece. They are rented
by their owners TO shopkeepers more
often than they are sold outright, the
advantage Of this method being that
the shOpkccper through II is able 10
change his show forms often.-Pbila.
delphla Press.
40 Many Like Him.