Maquette

ma-`ket, n [Fr. maquette; It. macchieta, sketch, diminutive of macchia; L. macula, spot], a usually small preliminary model; as of a sculpture or a building.

A 1/3rd life-size maquette is created as a scale model for the life-size Secretariat sculpture.

View photos of the completed maquette

(above) The roughed in 1/3rd life-size clay sculpture.

*click on thumbnails for larger pictures

The clay progresses to it's finished state where it is ready for the mold to be made.

Some portions of the sculpture are removed from the clay model before molding begins and molded separately.

The clay piece is coated with silicon rubber and a hard plaster shell, it is then removed from the clay model and cut apart for ease of wax pouring.

This process is the same for a life size piece as it is for a smaller piece. For instance, Secretariat was divided into 8 pieces (head, front torso, rear quarters, legs, and tail.) In total, there are more than 20 assembled pieces in the 1/3rd life-size bronze. The life-size version will be divided in a similar way for casting.

For the Lost Wax technique of bronze pouring, waxes are poured and then repeatedly dipped in a ceramic slurry alternated with silica sand. The coated wax pieces are fired in a kiln and the ceramic slurry and sand create a hard ceramic shell while the wax is melted out or "lost." Molten bronze is poured into the space left by the wax.

When thoroughly cooled, the ceramic shell is broken off and the rough bronze castings need to be cleaned as well as have any imperfections in the surface corrected. The pieces are then welded back together and the finished piece has a patina applied to the surface to add the distinctive color associated with a bronze art piece.

For more information on the lost wax /ceramic shell casting process and a nice pictorial of the method, please visit Arizona Bronze Foundry at the highlighted link.

These two photos are of the Maquette before the patina has been applied. In the first photo, with his wife Shirley and daughter Sheri, Ed is pictured attaching the chain for the lead that will go from Secretariat's bridle to Eddie Sweat's hand. Several small pieces for the maquette are hand wrought rather than being cast. Reins and leads are made from hammered bronze rods and soldered to the piece as the final step in the assembly of the finished piece.

View photos of the completed maquette