I’m finished with this Sullivanesque model now and plan to start making the mold to-morrow morning. it’s moist clay, somewhat firmer than it was as it started losing moisture, but it’s still delicate and a paint brush can leave marks on the surface so I have to almost flow the first coat of rubber on rather than firmly brushing it on.
I wanted to get the mold made before it dries since as it dries and becomes completely dry the clay shrinks about 15%, and then when pressed clay copies are made those would also shrink almost that much, so the double shrinkage of about 25% would seriously reduce the final size which I want to avoid by doing hte mold while it’s still moist and nearly the same size it was when I set it up.
I had to dig out some old unfired very fragile clay models of mine from the corner in the utility room since I had to replace the sump pump hose. This model of a Louis Sullivan design I did in 2008, I’m likely going to convert it to do it in terracotta, so I left the unfired clay model out to look over and plan for that.
This was not simply molded off an existing piece, it was modelled by me in 2008 for a Chicago client’s townhouse when he couldn’t find the exact design and quantity etc he wanted, so his contractor got hold of me and the end result was the client received three concrete casts of this, in an acid stained rusty red/orange finish.