Ceramic Sculpture Talking Point - Metal Armature On Clay Busts?

by Hannah J. Smith
(Seattle, Washington, U.S.A)

Ceramic Sculpture Talking Point - Metal Armature On Clay Busts?:- Hi Peter, you see, I have been trying to figure out whether or not to use a metal armature in the making of a clay bust/portrait.... i usually just make a support of shredded newspaper held up on a dowel..... and as the kiln bakes the clay, the paper turns to ashes.... but i was wondering if you knew of a way to maybe use a metal base or some type of other armature that might make the finished piece more sturdy perhaps?

I have noticed that you are more in the means of smaller peices..... but any ideas would be a great deal of help to me.....

Thank you for your time--

Hannah**~~___

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Reply by Peter (admin)

Hi Hannah

Thanks for taking the time to upload your query about armatures in ceramic sculptures.

I am not an expert technician on the firing side of ceramics as the factory technicians normally sort out this side if it. However, I do have some experience.

I would not recommend using a metal armature unless you are prepared to remove it before firing. Otherwise it might get messy! Paper disintegrates into ash, metal just changes shape and runs everywhere.

You are right, I normally work with sculpts (pretty lady figurines - see this link) that are about 11 inches high before firing.

However, I have, for example, fired a large hand built bust of a horses head about 18 inches high.

I don;t pretend to be an expert though so would appreciate other pitching in with their comments.

With the horse, I used the same technique as you (newspaper).

This is how I would deal with ceramic sculpture portrait bust (and what I did with the horse portrait):-

Before doing the final finishing (when happy with the overall pose and dimensions) section the piece on three parts (must be firm enough to handle without distorting, but not too hard and dry).

Remove the newspaper and hollow to about one inch to three quarters of an inch all over.

Rejoin the pieces and do the final details.

If you want, say a metal base, or a metal features on the sculpt, fire the piece and then use what they call in the UK Potteries "cold stick-up". In other words glue the metal to the ceramic sculpture.

Hope this helps.

Peter (admin)