BAMS Making Modern Art Medals 2024

Edited by Marcy Leavitt Bourne

With contributions from the artists: Philip Booth, Abigail Burt, Julian Cross, Sarah Davis, Roddy Mathieson, Martin Page & Danuta Solowiej

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

ARoughGuideforArtisticJourneys

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

Published by the British Art Medal Trust for the British Art Medal Society, London. First published 2023. This edition 2024. bams.org.uk

Design by Two twodesign.co.uk

Typeset in Bureau Grotesque

Condensed and Signifier

All images © the artists. Pages 89–96 © Roddy Mathieson except: Wax Tree, p90

© Lucy Smith; Ceramic Shell Moulds, p91; Dewaxing Shell Moulds, p92; Drossing Slag, p93; Pouring Vacuum Mould, p94 © Kenny Malcolm.

ISBN: 978-1-7390818-1-2

© the publisher and artists

This guide is for educational purposes only and not for reproduction commercially or for profit. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior permission of the publishers.

Cover photo by Julian Cross.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

ARoughGuideforArtisticJourneys

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS MAKING

INTRODUCTION

This brief introduction to the skills of making modern art medals is related to those ‘rough guides’ for travel in that it is about exploration, giving you suggestions for directions that you might take on artistic journeys, and practical ideas on how to make them. It is planned for you to discover and experiment with how art medals can be made. The artists who are included here – members of the British Art Medal Society – have shared their methods because they enjoy working with this medium and want to encourage others.

Marcy Leavitt Bourne

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

Some of the artists are sculptors, working on a larger scale; others have worked in jewellery. The skills that are learned by making medals apply whatever the size of the work, and whatever materials you choose to work with. As well as what the artists suggest, there are myriad other ways to approach the medal, and with this rough guide you will be able to find ones that work best for you. Whatever you use in the way of tools or materials (sharpness, chemicals, heat), wherever you are, studio or kitchen table, precautions (ventilation, gloves, mask) need to be taken for safety. And never, ever, rinse plaster down the sink.

Just what is the ‘modern art medal’? In the first place, the art medal has a long history, reaching back to Pisanello in the 15th century when he created his works of art in bas relief, cast in bronze, about the size that would easily be held in the hand.

These two-sided works of art often illustrated his patrons and their world, but they also conveyed his artistic ambitions and his artistic imagination. So, the medal isn’t something new; it is just brought up to date, to express contemporary views. Whereas Pisanello and other Renaissance artists were usually working to commission, today’s artist is also free to express thoughts and opinions that are personal, political or, indeed, poetical.

The artists in this guide have medals in public and private collections; they have been commissioned to make medals, but they also use this art form to express their views about the world around them. Here, they are sharing their thoughts on making medals that illustrate those views, as well as the skills that enabled them to create these small but powerful works of art that constitute the modern medal.

Danuta Solowiej’s teaching suitcase included tools, plaster blanks, modelling materials, moulds and finished medals.

ARTISTS’ TOOLS

Artists’ tools are very individual. Some are dental tools, some are hand made. They last a long time and become old friends. It is possible to use just about anything that makes the right mark.

SOME MATERIALS FOR MAKING & MOULDS

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ARTIST’S TOOLS

Danuta Solowiej took a radial shot of her medal making essentials, used and worn in places but in good working order. From the top, clockwise: curved tool; three plaster carving tools; two spatulas; three wax and clay modelling tools; three dental tools; three home-made tempered silver steel.

MAKING

↓ SPIRIT LEVEL

A spirit level (most phones have an app) is important, as Danuta Solowiej says, especially when casting two sides separately, so that after joining the overall thickness is as even as intended and not dictated by the slope of the work table.

SOME MATERIALS FOR MAKING & MOULDS

ARTIST’S TOOLS

Sarah Davis’s tools include a little selection of wooden ones, which can be used for pressing wax into place, and tools that she has modified to suit her style of working. Dental tools come in sets of 10 with various shaped tips. Knives are for cutting the wax into thin slices from the main block. Basically, anything can be a useful tool.

MATERIALS

Here are a few of the modelling materials used by artists and suggested brands, but this is for guidance only, not an endorsement. They are easily found by searching online. As Abigail Burt puts it: ‘I consider material experiments to be an important part of medal making: spending some time seeing what textures and effects you can make with wax, plaster, imprints into plasticine, collaging material on to the model, mark making with different tools etc. The list is as endless as your imagination.’

SOME MATERIALS FOR MAKING & MOULDS

TIRANTI WHITE MODELLING WAX

Sarah Davis finds that soft white modelling wax works best for her, also known as Scopas white modelling wax. It has a very low melting point and softens with the heat of your hand. It sticks to itself nicely, allowing you to build up layers of detail.

PLASTELINE (OIL CLAY)

Oil clay, sulphur-free plasteline is what Philip Booth has discovered really suits his working style. It is the material that industrial designers use to make prototype models, with all their demands for precision and controllable surface qualities. It is the ideal material for use in making the medal originals: harder than plasticine, holds its shape well, giving a robust model. You can use it to build up, to carve into and create fine details. It can be polished. Furthermore it is recyclable; all the bits that are left over can be formed into a lump by kneading it together like dough.

JULIAN CROSS SUGGESTS:

Plasticine, Chavent NSP Soft, is a material that works well for me when modelling, better than plasticine type materials. It offers good workability in the hand and firms up at room temperature. It is easily modelled with smooth wooden tools when soft and will take an almost mirror finish when smoothed with a little water. It’s also sulphur free, ensuring no cure inhibition.

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FILLED MODELLING WAX, SOFT 1704

Abigail Burt recommends what she says is a ‘brilliant, filled modelling wax’, from British Wax Refining Company Ltd. This is for modelling (though the company also supplies casting wax). This is a filled wax, meaning that an inert component is added to make it even more workable, but not suitable (hard enough) for direct casting. Mainly they deal with companies but have been very helpful. Other options are Monster clay and Chavant (again, not suitable for direct casting).

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

COMMENTS ON WAXES, JULIAN CROSS:

Many waxes are available, from soft through to hard machinable blocks and each has its pros and cons. Wax can be used as a direct modelling medium, and specialist waxes are available for direct modelling in a wide range of hardness. For lost wax or investment casting the ideal wax the foundry or caster expects is one that burns out easily and cleanly from the investment before the medal pour. I prefer the higher performance range of injection waxes. They can be hand poured into (warmed) silicone moulds with some care and produce very stable and handleable wax casts that can be patched, repaired and even carved a little. I tend to use GRS Premium injection wax in Green. Note: all waxes shrink a little on set, so allow for shrinkage in the modelling process if dimensions are critical.

USING JESMONITE

Jesmonite for casting is suggested by Sarah Davis, and used by others. It works in a similar way to plaster but is more durable. It also sticks well to itself, allowing two sides to be joined together seamlessly.

WHAT SIZE?

The sizes and weights of the finished medals vary, but as they are works of art held and turned in the hand, somewhere in the region of 200–400g is a reasonable weight when cast in bronze. But they can be small, too: 50–100g. Context is everything. Equally, the size might cover the palm of a hand, or be small enough to carry in a pocket.

SOME MATERIALS FOR MAKING & MOULDS

JULIAN CROSS, ON PLASTER:

For plaster, I would suggest Prestia Classic, a Beta plaster. It is not quite as super fine, white and hard as most Alpha plasters. The ‘Classic’ offers the most reliable mix and pour, as well as having a firm but almost cheesy texture when freshly poured, enabling quick and smooth intaglio carving when setting out.

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FINE CASTING PLASTER

Fine casting plaster – very different from builders’ plaster –can be supplied by Special Plasters or Industrial Plasters. Plaster blanks can be used, as shown by these made by Abigail Burt, to carve precise detail or lettering. The ability of plaster to work from negative to positive can be very useful in refining detail on a medal.

MOULDS

The process of making a mould, while working directly on the model, or for sending to a foundry to have the casting wax made, is useful as it means that if a work somehow is damaged you will always have the ability to duplicate your work. Art medals are usually cast in editions, as are many bronze sculptures. How to do it is discussed specifically by several of the artists in this guide. Here are a few suggestions for materials.

SOME MATERIALS FOR MAKING & MOULDS

SILIGUM

Siligum is an odourless silicone moulding paste which Danuta Solowiej finds easy to use, and the packets have clear instructions. The use of siligum is shown on page 83.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

↓ THE MOULD

This is the final mould for Sarah Davis’s medal, made from RTV silicone supplied by WP Notcutt, who have other moulding materials, as well as Jesmonite for making models. You can see the model from the cast on page 68, one of several steps towards the final medal.

SOME MATERIALS FOR MAKING & MOULDS

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RTV SILICONE RUBBER

Philip Booth recommends using a medium to hard grade of silicone rubber for making the first set of moulds from the originals. It comes in 1kg tins with catalyst. He suggests you tell the store what you are using it for and they should make sure you are okay.

COMMENTS ON MOULDS, JULIAN CROSS:

I often use a basic tin-based RTV standard silicone commonly known as 3481, but sold by different suppliers under similar names. It is a room temperature curing reliable silicone with minimal shrinkage. (Catalysts are available in different curing speeds.) Different types of silicone material have very different chemistry and require separation in the workshop, so you need to check the compatibility of materials. They will all have clear instructions.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS MAKING

EVERY ARTIST HAS A METHOD & PROCESS

The artists who have contributed their ideas and experiences concerning processes for this guide to making medals begin their work in different ways, some with sketches, some straight into modelling or carving. From model to mould, this will enable anyone on an artistic journey to see what might suit them and discover other options. Here, the artists share working methods, creating a sense of immediacy – being in the studio - a feeling that anything could be possible and that trial and error, mistakes and learning from them are all part of the wonderful exploration of making art, in particular making art medals.

PHILIP BOOTH Especially Making Moulds

THOUGHTS ON MEDALS

The art medal for me is closely connected to making sculpture, in certain principles at least. There are notable differences and the particular physicality of them, for me, has, over a number of years, brought about a variation in the language I engage. There is one obvious difference: that of scale. These are small works that by definition fit into the hand. There is an intimacy of interaction since touch and handling play as much of a role in interpretation as the visual interaction.

The small scale presents its own challenges, but the use of the two sides – and the edge – creates fresh potential for linked or contrasting imagery, which may open up a story in unexpected ways. In terms of imagery, my approach to medals often employs a juxtaposition of figuration and abstraction, creating connections, surprises and tangential references within the tight limits of the form.

INSPIRATION AND DESIGN

The genesis for ideas for the medals is a very similar process to that which I engage to develop ideas for sculpture. Sometimes ideas grow out of encounters with the landscape, and are invariably based on considered drawing on site. At other times the work starts with an idea that is then substantiated through other sources. Whichever is the starting point, this is then worked out through drawing and, at times, collage to a point where I feel that I have something with appropriate impact and ‘rightness’. It isn’t necessarily a predictable event. The process goes through numerous stages as drawings, usually in books, as the ultimate small scale of the work means that I am able to work 1:1 at all times.

EXPLORING IDEAS THROUGH DRAWING

Extinction is Forever, a recent medal, is the equivalent of an upraised fist against the folly of how irresponsibly human beings have treated the planet Earth. Its message is a warning about environmental destruction. How did this medal come into being? It began as a drawing in one of Philip Booth’s notebooks, as the sketches show. Words, too, are important, and lettering is often part of Booth’s medals.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

MATERIALS

To begin with making medals I first used a block of plaster, which was not such a sensitive material for the small scale of this kind of work. I next tried casting wax, but the wax being soft meant I was constantly repairing small blemishes inflicted by hands and tools in the wrong place, which is especially frustrating on the near finished work. Then I discovered oil clay (see Materials section). At times I construct into the surface of the clay or adhere other materials – metal or stone for example – into the surface, creating different qualities of surface and structure in the final piece.

ADDED MATERIAL

The medal Coincident shows how it is possible to position other shapes of different hard material into the model. When the medal is then cast into wax these surfaces will stand out against the texture created by the surface of the oil clay. It will not, however, take impressions from soft materials easily.

TEXTURE & DETAIL

Extinction is Forever medal in its final oil clay stage before having a mould made. The fine details of the skeleton are firm in this material, and the lettering is clear. The texture of the background in a circular outline contrasts with the rigid lines below the skeleton. Where part of the imagery is fragile and transitory, the other suggests overwhelming force.

Oil clay comes in a block like a brick and feels just as hard. Be persistent but careful when removing a chunk. It is impossible to roll out when cold. After putting it in a warm oven for a few minutes (don’t overdo it) I start by rolling out a plane, as with ordinary clay, between two laths. When it is cool and hardened I use a template –card or board – to cut out the basic shape required. I prefer the hard grade of oil clay as detail is more robust once finished. On the cool and hard surface you can draw lightly, transferring your final preparatory study as a starting point. After this it is a process of building on to the surface and modelling. You can make pieces separately, getting them close to a finished state and then attach them to the surface of the disc by cross hatching both surfaces that will come together. Do not use water (as with ceramics) to make them adhere, but instead work in a drop of two of turps to soften the clay a little, then it will adhere. (If you wait too long it becomes soft and mushy.) Leave for a while for the turps to absorb into the body or evaporate. It then hardens off a little for safe working and can be carved or finely modelled.

MAKING

INSTRUCTIONS FOR CREATING A MOULD

So, following the cross sectional diagrams, a to d:

Make a smooth bed of regular clay. Then I first cover one side of the work in damp tissue to keep the work clean (this saves both time and the risk of damaging your original getting clay off it). Very thin plastic sheet would be okay. Lay your model tissue side down on this bed and lightly draw around it. Lift away and scoop out a very shallow depression in the clay where your model will go up to about 5mm from your line.

Gently ease your model a little way into the bed of clay, to a depth of about 1mm, as in diagram a. Smooth off all around the edge, sealing any gap between model and clay bed.

Now build the ingate shape out of clay against the model. This will be the inlet for wax into the mould at the next stage and ultimately the inlet for the bronze at the final casting stage, so must be large enough, but not too big. I make mine according to the instruction given me by the foundry that used to cast my works. They are a wedge shape 30mm wide, slightly thinner than the model at the point of contact and expanding outward to about 10mm thick for the first half, to be added on to for the second half.

CREATING A MOULD

Cross sectional diagrams, stages a to d, of creating a mould.

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THE FINISHED MOULD

The finished mould illustrates the indents that will enable both halves to lock together in the right places. The bird skeleton is now in negative on the left, with its eye like a small ball, which in the final positive (as in the clay model) will actually be a round hollow socket. The other part on the right is the reverse of this part of the medal.

Also at this stage make the essential location indents to enable precise assembly of the mould for pouring wax. These are made with an appropriate tool pressed into the clay all the way around about 6–8mm from the edge of your model. My experience with this is that it is best to have quite a lot in order to ensure good location of both halves of the mould.

For the containment for the silicone I use a cut-down large circular yogurt pot (Lidls), pressed into the clay and all surfaces tidied off. Seal the contact of this container and the base with a clay fillet. This makes a very neat shape and, as I use a firm grade of silicone that holds its shape well there is no need for faffing with plaster jackets. Leave the silicone for 24 hours to fully cure.

In this diagram the poured silicone and model have been turned upside down from diagram c.

Casting the other side is an easy job as the already cast half of the mould fits snugly into the yogurt pot containment and all location indents are already made. Take care when removing the silicone half mould with the model from the clay bed and the containment. It should all come away easily. Try not to remove your model from the silicone at this stage, just remove the tissue, if used, and carefully clean any clay debris away. DO NOT remove the ingate plug you made earlier, instead build it up a little more to give a more symmetrical shape.

Set up for the next pour by firstly easing the already cast half to the bottom of the containment pot as in diagram. Tip: when preparing to pour the silicone for the second half of the mould spread a thin layer of Vaseline on to the silicon surface of the first half otherwise, despite what the manufacturers claim, the two halves can be difficult to separate risking damage.

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THE FINAL STAGE

Once the two halves of the mould are made, Booth’s method is to secure the two halves together in readiness for the wax to be poured by sandwiching them between two pieces of ply and closing with strong rubber bands.

Using the hard oil clay means that at the point of removing the original from the silicon mould, the model will be robust enough to take out without risk of damage, so if there has been a problem, you still have an original model in excellent condition to work with. When pouring the wax I find it useful to warm the moulds in the oven first to about 80 degrees. This helps the wax to flow better, reducing the risk of freezing and leaving air spaces that will need repair. I also quickly apply a layer of wax to both surfaces of the mould before closing and then pouring the remainder of the wax.

For the final moulds for bronze casting I use ceramic shell, the making of which is probably best done under technical supervision in a workshop. (For patination, the last stage, see The Foundry Experience section.)

THE FINISHED CAST MEDAL

Extinction is Forever, cast in bronze with patination and polish, showing fine details. This is one face of a medal that is actually in two parts, as Booth enjoys the challenge of making medals that come apart, or precisely fit together. Therefore, these medals have four faces in total. Here, the obverse of the closed medal, is a wonderful example of the kind of detailed surfaces one can achieve with oil clay. (Real size of complete medal: 85 x 85 x 15mm when closed)

ABIGAIL BURT

Imprinting

from Nature

INSPIRATION & DESIGN

My medal process is often inspired by nature; walking through nature; contemplating my relationship with the natural world; making sketches in my sketchbooks; researching other species; and printing out reference material to work in more detail from. I often do sketches of potential designs, many of which do not get realised. Making sketches allows me to work through ideas. I then often begin with a piece of plaster. I pour ‘blanks’ (see the section on Materials) into plastic lids, making myself circles or squares to start with. These can be used as a base on to which I model with modelling wax, or else I carve into the plaster. To begin, depending on the subject, I sometimes draw with pencil directly on to the hard plaster surface. I then carve into the plaster, engraving the surface with the lines of my design.

COMMISSIONS WORKED IN PLASTER

Making design drawings is a useful skill to develop if you are interested in undertaking medal commissions, because showing sketches of your potential designs to clients allows you to come to a design that they are happy with before you spend time physically making the model.

COMMUNICATING IDEAS THROUGH DRAWING

Designs and plaster for the commissioned medal for the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain. Drawings show the artist’s thoughts, about books, perspective and libraries, in a medal that creates spatial depth.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

To make different shape moulds to pour plaster into, to create the starting form for your medal, you can make a neat border out of cardboard and tape, with a clay or modelling wax seal around the edge to stop the liquid plaster leaking out. You can set it on a small board, and tap it up and down to help the bubbles rise leaving a smooth surface.

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CASTING DETALS

Medals have a long tradition of commemoration and celebration, and the design here is for the start of a wedding medal. It shows both the positive, which has had shellac put on it, and the negative of the piece, which is still being worked on. There is a lot of detail, in the clothing and hair. Lettering can be done by hand, or letter punches can be used; there are many ways of putting words on to a medal and it depends on the effect that is wanted. Historically, lettering was an integral part of medal making.

The ability of plaster to work from negative to positive can be very useful for refining details on your medal. Shellac (either to be mixed or already in diluted form) can be used to create a barrier on a piece of dry plaster, which with the addition of a release agent, such as soap, enables you to pour an opposite version of your medal to work into. For instance delicate details are easier to carve into the surface as lines, which on taking the opposite imprint are then raised. For all processes involved in working from positive to negative and vice versa in plaster to plaster or plaster to wax, it is vital that you have no undercuts in your design. Making silicone moulds is more flexible and allows a certain amount of undercut in the design.

LETTERING

Lettering, for example, can be carved into plaster blanks precisely, and then a wax ‘sticker’ can be taken. Make sure the lettering is carved backwards so that the resulting raised lettering is the correct, positive version. Soak the plaster in water until no bubbles are rising, lightly dry off the surface. Then paint wax into the detail to create the wax ‘sticker’, which can be stuck into your medal designs.

MAKING

WORKING FROM NATURE, USING WAX TO EXPERIMENT

Sometimes I start with carving into a softer material such as modelling wax. When carving straight into wax a good approach is to roughly form the wax into the shape and thickness you are aiming for, and then start to work in more texture and surface detail. You can also experiment with texture by pressing natural objects, such as branches, into plasticine.

IMPRINTING FROM NATURE

Plaster and wax details created from a branch illustrate the method of imprinting from nature.

A found piece of branch was first pressed into plasticine. Then a clay wall in the shape of a rectangle was built around the plasticine, and plaster was poured in on top of the branch. When the plaster is lifted from the plasticine ‘mould’ bits and pieces of debris can be peeled away leaving indented detail in the plaster. Wax can be poured into the wet plaster, and it is peeled off to create the opposite effect, as shown here.

If you place the plaster with the wax poured or painted on to it into a bucket of water, the wax will float off. Alternatively, the pressed branches can be removed from the plasticine and the pressed and indented shapes can be used to create a positive. Thinking ahead to the cast medal, remember that while wax feels light in the hand bronze weighs about ten times as much. Refining is important.

ALL IN THE WORLD

← FROM THE EARTH

A clay model, the first step in the process, of a medal inspired by Rabindranath Tagore, whose acceptance speech for his Nobel Prize for literature makes reference to the freedom and joy in living, as well as his deep love of nature. He spoke of hearing ‘the shouts and songs and glad voices, like those of trees which come out from the heart of the earth’. Burt’s medal captures that joyful spirit with its leaping figures.

Also reflecting on the world around us Burt created a medal from a found object, an ammonite, a fossil of great antiquity. There is no rule that says a medal must be round, which opens up a lot of possibilities to have the shape of the medal contribute to its meaning as well as the imagery. By keeping to the shape of the ammonite itself, it reminds one of its origins, once a living creature.

INSPIRED BY NATURE

The original ammonite, just as it was found on the beach; the wax of the ammonite, made from a silicone mould.

First of all, I made a silicone mould of the one side of the ammonite fossil that you see in the image. Then I poured plaster into the silicone to create a plaster version that I could then carve into on the reverse, forming a golden section spiral staircase. This is to reflect how we look to nature for inspiration.

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THE FINISHED CAST MEDAL

The reverse of the ammonite medal, now cast into bronze, showing the staircase, with Abigail Burt’s initials as signature on the edge. (Real size of medal: 75mm at widest point.)

JULIAN CROSS

Everything about Plaster

THIS IS JUST MY WAY

Each artist maker will have their own differing methods and materials they use in the creative process. What I want to show here is my own method of using plaster relief work in the production of a medal. This is a very brief insight into some of the methods I have successfully learnt to use over 40 years in modelling. Plaster relief work is a centuries-old technique and craft but the basic principles have not changed much over time.

PREPARE TO MAKE THE BLANK

To start with, you will need to create a plaster blank to work on. The plaster will be carefully poured on to a glass surface, which creates a flat smooth surface to the plaster when set. I use a piece of 30cm square 4mm float glass with softened edges. It is also possible to use any glass table top for this starting point of creating the blank. Make sure that the glass surface is completely level in all directions at this stage (see comments about a spirit level in Artists’ Tools section).

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Creating a Plaster Blank

An edge is needed for the plaster to be poured into. There are different techniques for this first pour, often using plastic pot lids and maybe cutting out the centre and fixing it to the glass with plasticine and pouring into it, removing the plasticine afterwards. I like the following method. It’s simple once you get the hang of it. I use a strip of cellophane (around 0.5 mm thick) and 3 or 4cm wide and about 60cm long with clean cut parallel sides. Curl it round to a circular shape on the glass and use a little masking tape at the overlap to just stop it unfurling. The cut edge of the cellophane must have a clean straight cut edge and it will then sit down well on the glass with almost no visible gaps. It doesn’t matter if the shape isn’t exactly circular. Tip: I have re-used this cellophane strip to make a ring dozens of times, so it saves hunting for another pot lid each time.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

MIXING AND POURING THE PLASTER

Equipment: a mixing bowl, preferably the flexible type, clean water and plaster. I always like to simplify things for ease and speed and avoid messy weighing and measuring of plaster and water. This simple method gives reliable results and gives you a feel for the material you are working with. Tip: It helps if you don’t mix up a lot too much plaster each time and so it is worth estimating the amount you will need. I use Prestia Classic plaster.

THE MIX RATIO

The approximate mix ratio is worth noting, about one part water to two parts plaster, therefore the amount of water you put in the mixing bowl will enlarge to about two and a half times the volume by the time you have added the plaster. A mug full of water would make a volume of around 2–3 mugs of plaster, and that poured into say a 15cm diameter ring would make a thickness of about 3–4cms. You will soon get the hang of how much water you might need, and it is best to slightly overestimate as you only get one chance at the pour stage to get the thickness of the blank about right, around 2–4cms thick approximately.

The Plaster Mix

First in the bowl is the clean water without any old flakes or bits left over in the bowl. Next comes the plaster, gently sprinkled in by hand or using a small scoop.

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THE METHOD

Tip: Wear a rubber glove, plaster is really alkaline and can damage or burn the skin in such close contact. Keep plaster dust to a minimum with good ventilation or wear a mask when handling loose plaster.

Keep sprinkling until you see that the plaster is becoming slower to be absorbed. At this point sprinkle slowly until there is a salt and pepper effect of dry plaster on the surface of the water that takes more than a few seconds to soak in. If after ten seconds it has all soaked in, add just a little more sprinkled plaster until it seems to stay for longer than about ten seconds. That’s it. Then make sure there are no clumps of dry plaster around the sides of the bowl by gently pushing them into the mix.

Plaster in the Bowl

While steadily sprinkling in the plaster wearing gloves, turn the bowl a little occasionally.

Then, do absolutely nothing for at least a minute to let the plaster ‘slake’, which is allowing every grain of plaster in the mixing bowl to become completely saturated before you do any mixing by hand. This also helps to prevent air entrapment.

MAKING

Smooth Away Lumps

Check for lumps by using a gloved hand to swirl the mixture around in the bowl, and smooth them away with some gentle mixing. Try for the consistency of double cream.

The mixture should be readily pourable, but not wet and runny. When you are sure the mixture is smooth, by gently squeezing it through your hand, it is ready to pour. The mixing process should have only taken 3 or 4 minutes including the slaking, so far. Tip: The reason for gently mixing is to avoid introducing air into the mix which will cause bubbles which can be problematical later. Always try to avoid creating bubbles in this and subsequent mixes.

POURING THE FIRST BLANK – THE SCARY BUT EFFICIENT WAY

Now take the mixing bowl to the cellophane ring on the glass. Very gently and steadily pour the plaster on to the glass into the very centre of the ring and allow the plaster to spread out to the sides. DO NOT touch or move the ring at this point. The weight of the wet plaster will push the ring out to being near enough circular; keep pouring until you have about the right thickness. The ring may move slightly as it is pushed by the plaster but let it find its position without helping it. DO NOT move the cellophane, or the wet plaster will escape from under and make a mess of your workspace.

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The Pour

The circular ring contains the mixture as you pour it out. If it’s a little lumpy you could swish it with a gloved finger, or gently bump the work table to settle the mound. It isn’t critical to have the top surface dead flat.

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Leave it for 30 Mins+

The surface can be flattened off later when set. Meanwhile, walk away from this and make sure no one disturbs your pour for at least half an hour. Even if there is seepage, just leave it for later when it is set and you can break it away.

MAKING

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The Blank What you really want for working on is the other side, the pristine surface, that the glass gives to the plaster face. There are other ways of doing this, such as pot lids etc, but with plaster poured on to glass the result can be marvellous.

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Release the Plaster

Unpeel the cellophane, and, using the edge of a thin blunt knife, gently get between the glass and plaster just to release the suction seal that will have formed. You can break away any dried seepage. Little bumps on the top can be flattened or scraped away.

Tip: Remaining plaster and what to do: Leave the residue in the bowl to set and then crack it out into a waste container. If you must wash out the bowl with the unset plaster in it, then wash it into a bucket of clean water. Leave the bucket overnight and the plaster will settle to the bottom. The clear water above that can be flushed away or re-used; the slurry of set plaster will be collected at the bottom of the bucket and scraped out for disposal. DO NOT rinse unset plaster down your drains. The only way that plaster products should be disposed of is at a recycling centre with special facilities. They usually make a small charge, so save up a bag full.

SETTING OUT ON THE BLANK, WORKING IN NEGATIVE

You can start on the pristine surface in several ways: one is to just start carving freehand, but it helps if you have a design outline that can be transferred to get started. I transfer a design using the following: drafting polyester film sheet, available as Polydraw. It can be wiped clean and re-used. Also, water-soluble art crayon (Faber Castell and other makes). Trace out the main details of your design boldly on to the film, the right way round, just outlined shapes as a guide to get carving into the plaster surface. Details come later when the ‘volume’ is carved in place.

Working in Negative

The drawn design is turned over on to the still damp plaster – important to have it fresh – reversing the image. This means that initially the work on the plaster will be done in reverse, working in intaglio. Working in intaglio enables an artist to achieve fine lines when the work is then made into its final positive.

Press down firmly on the back of the film with your thumb all over to transfer the design to the plaster, this will only work if the plaster is fresh and still very damp and the drawing on the film has been firmly drawn and then pressed down well. The design will appear in reverse on the plaster blank.

Tip: If you prefer to work in a more freehand manner, and you have a design, you can print it back to front, and use that image to work directly from on to the plaster.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

Marking Out

A geometrically based design, on which the angles and intersections are marked out with lines scored directly into the plaster, outside the design, as reference points.

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Carving into the Plaster

Carving has begun to an approximate depth in one area that had to be done first. This area will be a raised area when the plaster is reversed into a positive relief.

Further areas have been removed, always avoiding undercuts, and an impression has been taken using plasticine, Chavant NSP soft grey, to give an idea of how progress is going, checking the depth. The drawing shows a design that relates to the model.

PREPARING FOR A PLASTER CAST, MOVING TO POSITIVE

Having carved as much as I wanted, it then is time to create the plaster positive, correct some of the levels and the sections that I had roughly cut in the negative (reverse) first stage. I repeat this process many times in the next stages. To begin with it is important that the edge of the plaster is flat and as square as possible to the design face. This is so that wet plaster will be contained when placing a collar around it. You can use a surform with a flat blade to achieve this. It is also useful if the plaster is as circular as possible.

Squaring the Edge

This particular work in progress has had a compass line scribed from the centre of the design to near the edge of the plaster. The surform – its blade held at 90 degrees to the plaster – is used to shape the edge of the plaster to this line. Here the work is being trimmed circular and square, placed on a smaller disc so that the edge is free to be trimmed.

The next stage, having brushed away any loose bits of plaster, is to check there are no undercuts, which would create trouble in a mould. Using Pure Soft Soap and a soft brush you work up a ‘barber’s’ lather over the design surface only. Some will run down the sides but avoid getting it on to the back.

Tip: you can loosen the soft soap with some warm water to make it easier to apply, as it is quite a thick gel in the pot. Once it is lathered, leave it to rest for at least 15 minutes.

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Soft Soap

Here the plaster has been lathered with Soft Soap. This is a fatty soap and very good for its task. It is the high soluble fat content that makes it work so well.

Now, rinse the plaster gently under running cold water using the soft brush. You should see the water running off the surface as if it had been waxed. Submerge the plaster FACE DOWN in CLEAN cold water for at least an hour.

Tip: The reason for face down is so that the air bubbles escape from the unworked back of the plaster, not through the design face. Such soaking is to completely saturate the plaster with water which removes the ‘suction’ that plaster has and enables the next stage.

After you have taken the plaster from the water, you will now need to wrap it in a collar to contain the next wet plaster pour. There are different ways of doing this.

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Using a Collar Duct tape can be used to create a collar, but it does distort with its wavy edge, and means you would need to work it over with the surform before casting the next stage.

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Instead, return to your useful piece of cellophane, held tightly in place with a long rubber band, placed firmly on a flat surface. In this later stage of modelling you can see how straight the edge is. A little water sitting on the surface shows it has become waterproofed.

With the fully soaped, rinsed and soaked plaster securely in its cellophane collar, it is ready for a plaster pour. The process is the same whether pouring into a negative or a positive plaster, at every stage. Each time you cast, you make improvements and take the design forward. Likewise, mix the plaster as before. When the plaster is ready you will have maybe five minutes to complete the pour. After you have poured a small amount on to the model, pick it up and lightly shake it while holding it flat, to move the plaster around.

Blowing the Wet Plaster

Here the model has had the plaster shaken around the surface, and a straw is used to make sure it reaches all parts of the design.

Using the straw, blow the wet plaster about over the design ensuring the plaster gets into any detailed parts of the design. Any bubbles here will be dispersed by the agitation and straw blowing. Immediately continue to pour the remaining plaster swiftly and steadily into the collar, covering the model until you reach the desired thickness. The plaster should still be fluid at this point for another minute or two, so begin agitating the plaster by rocking it over the edge of the work table in a rhythm that causes the bubbles in the mix to rise to the surface away from the design face of the model.

If you have any access to a vibrating table that is ideal, something like a washing machine on full spin is the agitation required. Failing that, banging the whole piece up and down as firmly as you dare and for as long as the plaster is fluid, will all help to bring bubbles to the surface. Make sure the

collar is firmly attached. As soon as the plaster seems to be thickening, settle the whole thing with a couple of vigorous wobbles on the work table and leave to set undisturbed for at least 30 to 40 minutes.

SETTING PLASTER

To tell when plaster is set, you could of course leave it for a good deal of time. However, there is an optimum time to separate these plaster pours which is just after the plaster has cooled, after it has heated up. Plaster is exothermic when it is setting. A large bucket of plaster will get hand hot but a small medal cast size still gives off a little bit of heat when setting which you can feel with the back of your hand. Anything from 30 to 50 minutes might be required, you can also scratch the top surface to see if it feels firm set or still cheesy soft. This is simply a guide to the timing; you will get to judge from experience. It needs to be firm set.

Trimming Back

The double-thick plaster has been removed from its collar and is now ready to be separated. The knife is used to trim the surface back to flat, as needed.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

You should easily be able to find the line that separates the two halves. Gently tap with a blunt blade and a small weight around the line in several places, keeping the blade parallel to the surfaces. Do not force the blade in between but repeatedly tap around until a hairline crack appears.

Separating the Parts

A blunt blade is tapped with a small weight around the line in several places, with the blade parallel to the surfaces.

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With two hands, the two pieces are gently prised apart, pulling equally on both sides to separate them.

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The cast, on the right hand of the picture, is a faithful reproduction of the model in every detail.

If everything has gone right, you can then progress, though broken or stuck pieces are not uncommon and can be repaired at the next stage of carving, either in the positive or the negative. If there were undercuts, which would break sections of the model, you can ease that section at the next modelling stage.

EVERY ARTIST HAS A METHOD & PROCESS JULIAN CROSS

Work on the new cast, either positive or negative, developing the design, and repeat the soap, soak, cast process as many times as you wish to reach your desired outcome. I may go back and forth around 20 times. Any mistakes that are made in the positive, are easy to correct when in the negative, and vice versa. Once I have completed both sides of the plaster models to the design for the medal, I will then create a silicone mould from each side.

THE MAGNA CARTA MEDAL

This commission by Cross is of great complexity, nevertheless, the outcome was achieved by following the same method as described. ↑

In plaster, the reverse (left) shows Britannia with a blindfold, one hand out holding the scales of justice, the other holds a sword; the weighing pan offers viewers the opportunity to weigh their own conscience regarding justice. The gears surrounding her represent the churning of time over 800 years. These are repeated on the obverse (right), which here shows a detail of buried bones, life and death, a cycle. In a conflict, each side believes justice is with them.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

After each side was completed in plaster, a silicone rubber mould was then made, and from each silicone mould a thin cast was made of each side using Jesmonite. The two halves were aligned and joined together to make a single model, and this was then remoulded to create a single mould suitable for making the waxes to go forward to the foundry for casting.

Silicone Mould

The silicone rubber mould created a thin cast of Jesmonite.

One side of the medal, thinly cast in Jesmonite.

← Cast In Jesmonite

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The Mould of the Whole

The whole medal, in Jesmonite, in the silicone mould that will now be used for making the final waxes for casting.

The Magna Carta Medal (reverse), commissioned from Julian Cross in 2015 by the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths for its renowned collection of contemporary medals. Only four silver copies are being cast of this large medal, which is 145mm in diameter.

SARAH DAVIS

A Story in Wax and Plaster

THOUGHTS ON MEDALS

I was first introduced to the art of medal making in 2019 whilst taking part in the British Art Medal Society Student Medal Project. Since then, I have continued to make medals, which has given me a new way of expressing myself. My practice is predominantly sculptural, with a focus on organic forms that explore our relationship with pain, healing and mortality, exploring the rawest of ideas. The medal is a quiet moment placed within the palm of a hand, but within that space is unbounded possibility. When it comes to medal making, my ideas often start with a drawing. Sometimes the sketches are quite rough and give me a suggestion of the idea before I start modelling. On other occasions I will do a fully finished and to-scale drawing if I have a specific vision for the medal.

DEVELOPING IDEAS THROUGH DRAWING

To commemorate the fifth anniversary, in 2023, of Davis’s successful autologous stem cell transplant for lymphoma she designed a medal called Day Zero, referring to the day when the medical procedure goes ahead, virtually a new birthday. The drawn design of bones in a circle creates, as she has put it, ‘a kind of talisman that connects us all, to ourselves and to our past, a reminder of what we share’. Room is left in the drawing for the design to evolve through modelling.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

The medium I like to use is soft white modelling wax (see the section on Materials). For the medal I decided to model directly on to a Perspex disc to give myself an even flat surface to work on. In the illustration you can see the disk placed over the drawing to give me an outline to model within.

PERSPEX DISC & DRAWING

Perspex disc placed over the initial drawing for Day Zero. Alongside it is the reverse of the medal in plaster, with the words ‘Happy Birthday’. The lettering has been hand written, making it even more personal.

When making a medal I always work each side separately, and then make a silicone mould of both. The silicone mixes to a pourable consistency. To make the mould, a clay wall is built around the medal with a 2cm gap and the silicone is poured in on top, creating what is known as a block mould (see the section on Moulds).

↓ MODELLED ON THE DISC SURFACE

The Perspex disc, showing the modelled bones for the obverse of the medal. Using the Perspex creates the smooth, somewhat clinical, surface, to suggest a relationship to medical procedures.

↑ CAST IN JESMONITE

This is the finished modelling work for both sides of the medal in Jesmonite.

After each side has been cast into a solid material, I glue them together and carve detail into the edge. I used Jesmonite to cast the two sides, which works in a similar way to plaster but is more durable. It also sticks well to itself and you can create a smooth seamless join. Traditionally medals are cast in bronze, but for this medal I chose sterling silver. I sent it off to a jeweller’s foundry for the final mould making and casting. At the foundry a two-part mould is made of the medal, which is filled with casting wax. The wax is melted out – lost – leaving a hollow for the silver to enter. I finished the work in my studio by hand using a series of files and abrasives to create a subtle satin surface with polished highlights.

EVERY ARTIST HAS A METHOD & PROCESS SARAH DAVIS

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THE FINAL MEDAL

Day Zero, cast in sterling silver by Sarah Davis. (Real size of medal: 58mm x 5mm)

MARTIN PAGE

From Wax to Words

MEDALS AND METHODS

Carving and engraving steel was my introduction to making medals, including creating the steel die for the 650th birthday medal for the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths. For a number of years I worked for a commercial mint, carving 10-inch plaster models for commemorative medals. In my jewellery making practice, modelling in wax has always been part of the process, and I applied this to create cast medals while working with my students on the BAMS Student Medal Project.

STARTING POINTS

When starting to design a medal I use different inspirational techniques, often researching quotes which I can work through to images, creating wax shapes or textures which suggest a context, as well as working from my drawings.

DEVELOPING IDEAS THROUGH DRAWING

A page of drawings from a sketchbook, showing ideas for the placement of lettering around the centre of what became the medal, Beware when Fighting Monsters, which takes its theme from Nietzsche’s aphorism: ‘When you look into the abyss, the abyss also looks into you’. (See page 77.)

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

I have used many different approaches in starting to create a final wax ready for casting: modelling with oiled clay on glass over an original drawing; casting plaster on to the clay; sometimes working plaster before taking a mould.

When transferring a drawing on to plaster, using a drafting film such as Polydraw works best because tracing paper crinkles on the damp plaster. After I have carved and worked the plaster, I take a silicone mould from it. At this point I pour wax into the mould, and will continue to work into the wax. I rarely work up a final design in plaster, but use it as a quick method of developing shapes

The wax an artist works with is a very individual choice. I mix different waxes, melting them together to give me a suitable wax soft enough to carve, but hard enough not to distort while handling, and I pour this into the mould. I usually use Tiranti’s green casting wax to which I add their Microcrystalline wax, shown in the melting pot.

MELTING THE WAX

On the bench is blue engineering wax. Page adds this if the mixture is too soft, commenting that it’s important to mix the wax well in the pot, stirring it and making sure it is a consistent colour.

Pouring a little on to a cold surface to check the desired softness and workability is good idea.

CREATING TEXTURES

To create forms and textures you can pour molten wax over shapes or different textures. I have poured hot wax over crisp packets, manipulated with a heat gun, or ordinary kitchen foil, crinkled and shaped. The wax takes this texture, and this can help initiate ideas and start the modelling process. I then put the worked wax, on the foil or plastic, to chill in the freezer for a short time, depending on the thickness of the wax, as this helps to separate the wax more easily from whatever material you have used to create texture. How a medal feels in the hand is an important aspect of the medium, as touch can convey a great deal. For instance, the texture for the medal We Create Tools, obverse, was made with a scraping tool to imitate a carved texture, which relates to the medal in its entirety. (See page 81.)

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

CREATING FORMS

Working directly with the wax, in order to make the shape I want, I make a copper sheet outline of the shape and place it on to a metal or thick glass plate.

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COPPER OUTLINES

The outline shapes are made to be as close as possible to the final dimensions of the work. From this, the final shape of the medal is formed as the wax is manipulated. A medal need not be made all of a piece, and additional wax, for details, can be added in the process.

The wax is then poured into the containing copper bands. I then work up to the final profile with files and scrapers before adding wax for any carved, raised detailing.

WAX CASTS

The larger rectangular shape of wax was cast to use up the wax blend. It would be cut up for future use. Different waxes have different qualities. Soft wax can be pushed and modelled, used for building up, even used in a painterly manner; harder waxes are used for carving, more for taking away. All of them can be used to create illusion in low relief.

LETTERING/TEXT/INSPIRATION

Using text on a medal has always been of interest to me, as has engraving it on to a medal die, which must be cut in reverse. Developing my own personal script I very much enjoy. My starting point might be from a phrase, book or poem, or something I’ve heard. I will use the quote to develop the form of imagery of the medal before deciding on where and how the text will be spaced.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

Lettering is difficult to carve in wax, whether in intaglio (carving into the wax) or cameo (having the lettering in relief). I have always used a personal free font rather than any defined font. It adds a personal artistic quality to the medal. Of course, there are letter stamps available, which can be warmed and pushed into the wax. Old typewriter keys are useful in making your own stamps for impressing into wax.

THE CAST MEDAL

Beware when Fighting Monsters

Obverse (top) reverse (bottom), 2011, bronze, 59mm diameter

From Page’s sketchbook drawings to the final piece, this medal illustrates the artist’s method: the quotation is the start of the thinking process, then comes the experimentation with the sketches, followed by its shape in wax and working out a personal letter face, which, on the obverse here, is incised, with the dark, ’abyss’ in the centre. The carefully printed letters suggest caution and care –in the making and in the thinking – and a curiosity about what is to follow.

On the reverse of this medal the lettering changes; it is in cameo, or relief, it is flattened, and thus the feeling in the hand is different. The raised letters make a demand on the holder, to examine them with fingers. Just as the quotation suggests, the lettering has its own effect. Even the word 'looks' has an inquisitive air about it. The centre is highly polished, and perhaps it is a place where the holder sees themself reflected.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

LETTERING/METHOD

To begin with, whether I am creating intaglio or cameo lettering on to wax, I start with a layout on drafting film, which I either scratch or prick with a needle. Using this layout, I often using a graver (a useful tool to have for this purpose) to start cutting intaglio lettering in the wax. When the wax is cast, I will use engravers to both clean up and define or deepen the text. Other tools are useful for deepening and widening the engraved line.

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The text is pricked through the tracing paper on to the wax.

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Next in the sequence is adding the wax bead, following the pricked-out lettering.

↓ Flattening the bead and carving around the lettering

For cameo, raised lettering, I lightly scratch out a layout on to the wax with a soft point. I lay wax using a hot tool, picking up the wax on to the tool, and lay a wax bead on to the wax that is already in the shape of the medal, following the layout. I flatten the bead of wax with a sharp blade or lightly with a dreadnought file (again a tool that is readily available from art shops). Then, with the lettering flattened, I work around the letter forms with a sharp tool. Tools are personal to the artist, and by experimenting you will find what suits you best. →

MARTIN’S TOOLS

An artist’s tools are really extensions of the hand, and it is important to have the right tool for the job. They can be purchased, new – or, if lucky, found second hand – and can also be made out of whatever looks like it could work. The can be adapted to suit your own hand, to feel comfortable, a part of you as an artist. If working with the wax does not seem to be going the way you want it to, experiment with modifying or making a tool to suit you.

LETTERING/SIGNIFYING MEANING

Traditionally, a medal often has text on it, which contributes to its meaning. I altered the original quote from Marshall McLuhan, the Canadian philosopher, for the medal We Create Tools & Mould Ourselves Through Our Use of Them, to articulate and add association to the images. It was commissioned by the British Art Medal Society.

When I made this medal, I wanted it to express my interest and fascination about ancient tools and methods of making, as well as to be a reflection of my own craftsmanship. I have used the contrasting cameo, intaglio lettering on each side to add another visual element. I used cameo lettering on the ‘flint’ side to infer a historical context with the contrasting clean engraved lettering as if from a sculpture inscription on the reverse.

This engraved lettering was added on to the bronze master to keep the engraving as clean as possible before sending to the casting company to mould and cast the edition. Before the edition is cast at the foundry there are choices of how to do this: it can be from wax or from the initial bronze ‘master’, which is then worked on, chased, cleaned, and lettering added, as is the case with this medal. Contrasting the lettering of the text on both sides emphasises the idea of solidity from the past moulding the future.

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THE CAST MEDAL

We Create Tools & Mould Ourselves Through Our Use of Them Obverse (top) reverse (bottom), 2013, bronze, 68 x 55mm

DANUTA SOLOWIEJ

The Medal as Witness

THINKING TO MAKING

My relationship with medals is long but not well documented. I don’t write, I prefer to talk. I think with my fingertips. I am not ashamed of my childlike enthusiasm and curiosity about medals. I see my repertoire of skills as an advantage rather than a hindrance. I take my time. My medals fall into two categories, commissions and independent research. They inform each other and both require discipline and commitment. In commissioned work every step has to be accounted for, while independent work allows for wandering. These fluid, sometimes elusive journeys are difficult to retrace but the end results are revealing and reflected in the titles of the medals, often grouped within a theme. The anatomy of the medal – its two-sidedness and the edge – is helpful to think through ideas.

MODELLING TO FINISH

Siligum is extremely useful and reliable (see the section on Moulds). Details come out nicely.

STEP BY STEP

From the start, the image is of the artist working with siligum where the two components are being mixed together by hand to be applied directly to the object.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

The working time is up to 3 minutes, the setting time is 5 minutes. Making a mould in this way means that it is ready to use straightaway, although for large or complex objects plaster backing is recommended. Siligum is suitable for casting multiples of plaster, wax, Jesmonite and resin. It is an easy to use product and the packets have clear instructions. It is fast-setting and non-toxic, an alternative to silicone.

← CASTING MULTIPLES

The small face is removed from the mould, and it can be placed on the plaster disc of the working model for the medal.

For this medal, the heads were made separately and glued to the surface with PVA; the joining gaps were filled with fine grade, ready mix Polyfilla, edges were smoothed and then I took a silicone mould of the whole. On the other side the heads are in negative, but the process is more or less the same.

↘ THE MODEL OF THE MEDAL

Both sides of the model of the medal Trust Your Instinct, a commission for the British Art Medal Society in 2019. Here it is in its finished form, ready to be sent to the foundry for casting. Solowiej always makes a duplicate before it goes, especially if it is for a commission, and for that uses either siligum or silicone.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

At the foundry a silicone mould is taken from which the foundry will cast its waxes. The waxes are covered with either investment material or ceramic shell. That makes a mould ready for lost wax casting. The wax is melted out of these moulds – lost – and the void is filled with molten metal. Once the metal is solid, the mould is broken and the cast is revealed. And then the finishing begins.

↓ THE FINAL CAST MEDAL

The bronze obverse of Trust Your Instinct, on which the eyes are closed. (Real size of medal: 80mm)

The small heads began with a series I called ‘Witnesses’. I have tweaked the heads occasionally since, but it was minimal. The only notable change was introducing the version with the closed eyes. These heads were always present while growing up in Poland, something to do with being amongst the Catholic and Orthodox churches, the way in which saints are depicted, the overflow of rituals and imagery, plus frequent visits to the puppet theatre throughout my childhood. Also, I have a curiosity regarding boundaries and behaviour of the crowd vs the individual, obedience vs rebellion, conformity vs eccentricity. Trust Your Instinct is a reflection on our reasoning as individuals vs herd behaviour.

PATINATION, THE FINAL STAGE

There are several chemicals that can alter the colour of metal but not all are easily available, and there are several ways of applying them. Safety is paramount, so the best way is to have it demonstrated by a person with experience in a suitable set up. For many years I used liver of sulphur solution which is applied by brush to metal heated with the torch, but recently I switched to platinol oxidising solution, which is a cold application but gives the same results, ranging from soft brown to near black.

Medals can be patinated at the foundry, but most artists prefer to do the patinating themselves. Danuta Solowiej describes patinating the finished bronze medal, or any work made in metal, as ‘controlled corrosion, because the chemicals are reacting with the surface of the medal in a controlled way (or so we would like to think)’. It can be done in many, many different ways. In fact, experimentation with patinating a medal can lead to a lot of surprises. When you begin on a work of art you may have an idea of how you would like the finish to appear – what would be darkened, what would be polished surfaces – or it may be a question of waiting to see. Liquids such as citrus juices and other organic materials will alter the appearance of metals. If you are experimenting, you can note the results and start a comprehensive list to refer to of what works best. There is also oil, acrylic and enamel paints, available from art shops.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

THE FOUNDRY EXPERIENCE, RODDY MATHIESON

THE FOUNDRY EXPERIENCE

Once your medal has been prepared for casting, it may be that you send it to a local foundry, or a university foundry, or even your own small foundry. As well as teaching, Roddy Mathieson runs his own in Scotland, called The Mobile Foundry, and also has cast medals at the University of Dundee for many years. Casting isn’t something you can do at home without specialist equipment, experience and a good deal of caution. The photos, from Dundee, take you through the foundry process, from the time that a wax cast original model or cast of a medal comes into the foundry.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

RODDy MAThIESON TAkES yOu ThROuGh ThE FOuNDRy ExPERIENCE.

WAX CAST

A wax cast of the Royal Society of Literature medal by the artist Linda Crook, produced from a silicone mould. It is being prepared for attachment on to the casting tree. A number of medals are attached so that they can all be cast at once. The original was made in plaster.

THE FOUNDRY EXPERIENCE, RODDY MATHIESON

WAX TREE

The waxes are secured on to the casting tree: the funnel shaped base is the pouring cup; the wax rods are the runners that supply the metal from the pouring cup into the design; the other rods are attached, called risers, to help the air in the moulds escape via the top edge of the pouring cup. ↑

CERAMIC SHELL MOULDS

A number of works are shown here in ceramic shell moulds, which have been created by dipping the wax pieces into a ceramic slurry, and then coating the slurry layer with a crushed ceramic grit (molochite). Around 7 layers are applied.

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

LOST WAX

This is the ‘lost wax’ part of the procedure. It is a detail of the wax escaping from the hot ceramic shell moulds. It can be done in a kiln, or in this case using a propane torch. While some of the hot wax may ignite, most of it is caught below in a basin of water, for recycling.

THE FOUNDRY EXPERIENCE, RODDY

MATHIESON

→ MAINTAINING TEMPERATURE

The temperature of the bronze is measured as it melts in the crucible: too cold and it will not flow through the mould, too hot and it creates porosity and shrinkage in the casts.

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THE BRONZE IS ‘DROSSED’

Here, the crucible of hot bronze is lifted out of the furnace in order to add flux to the melt to help it degas and clean it; the surface of the bronze is ‘drossed’, that is scraped slightly, to remove any slag from on top.

POURING THE MOULD

Pouring the vacuum mould. The bronze is cooled somewhat before pouring. Judging the right temperature to pour the moulds is crucial. Too much work has gone into the process to make a mistake at this point. The plaster investment mould is installed in a vacuum chamber, air is sucked through the porous plaster, and when the bronze is poured it is drawn in under pressure, helping to capture all the finest details, and at the same time avoid issues with air bubbles in the mould. As two technicians pour the metal, a third is drossing the crucible to ensure only the clean metal enters the mould.

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THE CASTING TREE

Straight out of a sand mould, the casting tree will be cut off for recycling and the casts cleaned up. They will be cut off using an angle grinder. Once all the chasing (filing, sanding etc) has been done on the cast, it is then sandblasted to clean the surface prior to patination, and also any remnants of the mould are removed.

THE FOUNDRY EXPERIENCE, RODDY MATHIESON

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THE FINISHED PRODUCT

This medal has been patinated with liver of sulphur, applied with a paintbrush and gas torch. The sulphur reacts with the copper in the bronze and creates a brown patina. This is the most commonly used, as it also serves as a base coat for colours to be applied on top, and produces a classic brown and gold effect, where the surface has been rubbed back with steel wool to reveal the bronze and highlight the details.

Linda Crook’s finished and patinated medal for the Royal Society of Literature was cast, finished and patinated by Roddy Mathieson. (Real size of medal: 86mm)

THE FOUNDRY EXPERIENCE, RODDY MATHIESON

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

MAKING MODERN ART MEDALS

PHILIP BOOTH

Philip Booth is a member of the Royal Society of Sculptors. He was senior lecturer at Falmouth School of Art from 19802002. From 1995-97 he was visiting professor of sculpture at Nagoya University of Arts, Japan; from 2002-2010 he was professor of design at Nagoya, where he is Emeritus Professor. He has exhibited widely in Japan and the uk, and continues with regular solo shows as well as contributing to major national open exhibitions. philbooth.co.uk

ABIGAIL BURT

Abigail Burt graduated from Falmouth University and received an MA from the Royal College of Art. She uses sculpture to engage with social and environmental agendas, curating public participatory projects around material process and storytelling. She activates her portable foundry for artist-led projects, and continues to develop sustainable practices. She was a Churchill Fellow, has taught in the foundry at Chelsea College of Art & Design, and is engaged on a PhD at the University of Portsmouth. abigailburt.co.uk

@abigailburt

JULIAN CROSS

Julian Cross is an entirely self-taught artist working in many media including bronze and precious metals, using diverse techniques such as plaster-relief carving, sculpting and metalwork. Forty years of experience in the creative field to a high level of skill has led to his work being much in demand. He is a freeman of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths. He is President of the British Art Medal Society. juliancross.com info@juliancross.com

SARAH DAVIS

Sarah Davis is a multimedia artist using hands-on sculptural techniques to explore the cyclical nature of recovery and renewal. She uses traditional approaches with a deep historical resonance, such as wood carving, wax modelling and bronze casting. In 2012 she graduated from Chelsea College of Art & Design, and returned to education in 2015 to study at the City & Guilds of London Art School, where she now teaches woodcarving and conservation. She has twice received recognition for her work as a wax modeller at the Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards. sarahgdavis.co.uk

@sarahdavisartist

RODDY MATHIESON

Roddy Mathieson teaches at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, University of Dundee, in the foundry, using his expertise for medals and for larger works. His Mobile Foundry is involved with public art projects, especially in Scotland, where he feels it is important that local people have a say in art that will have a visual impact on their lives. He also makes medals, and they often have a political content. In 2022 he received the Marsh Award for the Encouragement of Medallic Art.

@themobilefoundry

@djcadfoundry

MARTIN PAGE

Martin Page studied jewellery design at Central School of Art and Design, and completed his MA at the Royal College of Art. He worked for many years as a jewellery designer and goldsmith, manufacturing jewellery, silverware, awards and medals before

MAKING

turning to full-time teaching. He shows his work in exhibitions and galleries around the world and has pieces in national permanent collections, including the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. He became head of the Art Department of Truro College, writing their foundation and BA degree in silversmithing and jewellery. martinpage.org.uk

@mpage52

DANUTA SOLOWIEJ

Danuta Solowiej completed her masters degree in sculpture at the Fine Arts Academy in Warsaw, specialising in medallic art. She came to London in 1987, and became a visiting lecturer at the Royal College of Art for over two decades. Exhibiting, teaching or making are important to her, but in no particular order of preference, as she finds that they influence and nurture each other. She has exhibited in the uk and internationally and received the Marsh Award for the Encouragement of Medallic Art in 2023. She is a freeman of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths.

@danutasolowiej

THE EDITOR

Marcy Leavitt Bourne, who has an MA from the Courtauld, is an art historian and writer, specialising in modern art medals; she is a Secretary of the British Art Medal Society and Director of the BAMS Student Medal Project.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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Hughes, Richard and Michael Rowe (1991). The Colouring, Bronzing and Patination of Metals: A Manual for Fine Metalworkers, Sculptors and Designers. Thames and Hudson Ltd.

Hurst, Steve (1996). Metal Casting: Appropriate Technology in the Small Foundry. Intermediate Technology Publications.

Langland, Tuck (1999). From Clay to Bronze: A Studio Guide to Figurative Sculpture. Brand: Watson-Guptill.

HISTORY

Attwood, Philip (1992). Artistic Circles: The Medal in Britain 1880–1918. British Museum Press.

Attwood, Philip (2002). British Art Medals 1982–2002. British Art Medal Trust.

Attwood, Philip, Janet Larkin and Marcy Leavitt Bourne (2022). Encounters With Medals, 40 Years of BAMS Conferences. British Art Medal Trust.

Jones, Mark (1979). Contemporary British Medals. British Museum Publications.

Jones, Mark (1979). The Art of the Medal. British Museum Publications Ltd.

Leavitt Bourne, Marcy and Melanie Vandenbrouk Przybylski (2012). The New Medallists. British Art Medal Trust.

Thornton, Dora (2023), The Art of Fame, Art Medals in the Goldsmith’ Company Collection 1973–2023, The Goldsmiths’ Company.

Many thanks are due for the creation of Making Modern Art Medals:

In particular the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths and the Goldsmiths’ Centre, where dedication to the teaching and continuation of creative skills is paramount; their grant has made this publication possible.

The generosity of the Worshipful Company of Tin Plate Workers alias Wire Workers has made it possible to publish Making Modern Art Medals, A Rough Guide for Artistic Journeys in printed book form.

To all the artists who participated, not only writing each piece but being on hand to answer questions from an editor who is a writer not a maker.

The Worshipful Company of Founders, for years of support and focus on foundry skills.

Everyone at the British Art Medal Society, always encouraging and enthusiastic.

Teddy Bourne, without whose computer skills and patience this would just be blank pages.

MAkING MODERN ART MEDALS – A Rough Guide for Artistic Journeys –is a brief introduction to the skills of making modern art medals. It is related to those ‘rough guides’ for travel in that it is about exploration, giving you suggestions for directions that you might take on artistic journeys, and practical ideas on how to make them. It is planned for you to discover and experiment with how art medals can be made.

“Congratulations on a book which is as beautiful as it is useful.”

SIR MARK JONES FRSE

“This is a brilliant guide through one of the lesser-known processes, invaluable for anyone who wants really to appreciate the art of making.”

BRYONY ROBINS, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, ROYAL CORNWALL MUSEUM

“An important resource for makers and students who can make work on any scale from pendant size medals to sculptures, using the most fundamental skills that have been handed down over millennia.”

DR

MALCOLM APPLEBY MBE FRSE

“Even though – as a sculptor – I am familiar with the whole casting process, I found this book fascinating and very informative. If it doesn’t inspire you to start making, nothing will.”

ANN CHRISTOPHER RA

“This publication contains the distilled knowledge of experienced medallists who openly share tried and tested techniques and invaluable advice on how to create beautiful medals.”

DR KEVIN CLANCY FSA, DIRECTOR, THE ROYAL MINT MUSEUM