Life Casting

Objectives:

The student will understand the history and uses of Life Casting in plaster
The student will work with a new material, plaster gauze to cast their own hand(s) &/or other body part
The student will understand that tattoos and mark making on the skin have a long diverse history of use in different societies and cultures.
The student will create a tattoo design that has some kind of personal significance
The student will apply their personal design onto their life cast using various mediums of their choice

History of Life Casting:

*Life casting is a historic art technique practiced by several ancient cultures. For example Egyptian Pharaohs and other royal citizens would have their likeness captured for eternity, by a direct impression method before being skillfully cast in precious metal.

*In the 17th century the emperor Napoleon and others of that time were immortalized, usually after death. Their faces frozen in the serenity of unconsciousness have come to be called “Death Masks”.

*One notable exception to the death mask is the Life Mask of Abraham Lincoln, which was made while Lincoln was still an Illinois lawyer. The mask was made on Saturday, March 31, 1860. Lincoln said, “It’s a process that was anything but agreeable.”

*From the 1840’s onwards one can observe a proliferation of the use of life casting in many scientific disciplines. Phrenologists, anthropologists, doctors, botanists, zoologists, etc. made plenty of prints and casts for teaching and research, as testified by the collection of dermatological pathologies of the Musée de l’Hôpital Saint Louis, the collection of vegetables, cast and painted with natural colours, of the Vilmorin estate, or the spectacular polychrome prints of mushrooms gathered in the Musée d’Histoire naturelle in Nice by the naturalist Jean-Baptiste Barla between 1855 and 1895.

“A Moulage Sur Nature” (A casting from life) , Edouard Dantan’s 1887 painting depicting the process of life casting in an artist’s studio of the 1880’s.

Studio Wall (1872) is an oil painting by the German artist Adolph Menzel, now in the collection of the Hamburger Kunsthalle.

Wall of the artist's studio 1852 Adolph Menzel

Many artists bought casts of arms, legs, feet, etc. in specialised shops. Hanging on the workshop walls, the plaster casts were used as permanent models and contributed to the atmosphere of the place, as illustrated by the famous Workshop Wall by the painter Adolph Menzel

The Monument to Balzac (1799-1850) by Auguste Rodin, is famous for its depiction of the dressing gown the author liked to wear when working at home.

In his concern for accuracy, Rodin dressed his study for the figure in a real dressing gown, giving it the shape he wanted by stiffening it with plaster. What emerged from the mold was a strange plaster ghost―an empty garment showing the position of the body it covered. This object enabled Rodin to create the very subtle drapery for his artwork.

Study for Balzac's Dressing GownAuguste Rodin (1840-1917)

Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917), Monument to Balzac, original model 1897, enlarged 1898

Materials & Tools:

plaster gauze rolls (small)
petroleum jelly &/or cling wrap
acrylic paint
scissors (the ones for plaster!)
washing-up bowl/bucket to wet the plaster in
old papers or place-mats to keep your workbench clean
paint palettes and brushes

Process:

Step 1 -

Students plan their ideas in their sketchbook; hand pose and finished design.
Plans need to incorporate designs/symbols/imagery which expresses their past, present and future.

Essential Question:

What is the purpose of tattoos?

Write down at least two ideas.

What is a tattoo? How are they created? What tools do you need to make one? What are the different reasons behind them? What do they signify? Are all tattoos the same? When did people first start getting tattoos? Are tattoos always done by choice? Are there any times in history you can think of where a tattoo was done without the person's consent?

Step 2 -

Students start by pre cutting the plaster into manageable strips.
They coat their hand/arm with either petroleum jelly or plastic wrap.
Then they layer on the strips dipped in water- massage gently to activate the plaster. Overlap strips slightly. Two layers is usually sufficient for strength.
Do the front half and back half separately, then once removed, join with plaster gauze.
You can try to do a full hand cast- it's tricky- you cast the palm first, then the individual fingers. Once dry, you attach them all together. (There's always one student who chooses to cast their whole hand in one go- it usually never ends well as you can see below! But some do!)

Step 3 -

Once dry and nice and solid, it's time to paint. At this point, a lot of my students like the sand down their sculptures with sandpaper. They tend to prefer a really smooth surface on which to paint.

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