Bronze sculpture is part of the decor and a masterpiece of the master. As far back as the 3rd millennium BC, sculptures and vessels made of bronze were made on the territory of Mesopotamia. The art form has survived to our days and, despite its antiquity, is very popular in the 21st century.
History of Bronze Products
Initially, ordinary tools and household items were made of bronze, and much later, works of art began to be made.
At first, tools were produced using cold forging. But for the economy, such items were fragile. Tin began to be added to copper and a stronger metal - bronze - turned out. She succumbed to sharpening better and was much stronger.
Mankind developed and the method of hot casting was tried, which served as the start of the artistic manufacture of products.
Bronze sculptures began to appear in the 5th century BC. Portraits of leaders, statues of a female body, figures of animals and birds were cast.
Archaeologists still find ancient artifacts, thanks to which the knowledge of bygone days is expanding.
Antique bronze sculptures interestingly respond to the flow of light rays. Bronze reflects light with clear, sharp highlights. The main background of such products is based on contrasts of appearance and distinct dark outlines.
Basic properties
For the sculptor, bronze is a substance that guarantees the longevity of his work. Despite different weather conditions, bronze sculptures are preserved for several centuries, which emphasizes its value:
- Oxidizing, the sculptures are covered with a thin coating called patina, and acquire a color from greenish to black.
- Bronze is interesting in that it is an aesthetic material. All bronze figurines, sculptures, figures of yellow-red or yellow-green hue. Products made from this material lend themselves well to tinting, gilding and polishing.
- Bronze alloys are an expensive material, coins were minted from it, and jewelers made jewelry.
Bronze is not pure metal, but with impurities. There are many different bronze alloys.
Copper alloys
Alloys have different tin and copper contents. Typical modern bronze contains 88% copper and 12% tin. There is alpha bronze. It includes an alpha-solid mixture of tin in copper. Such alloys are used for minting coins and mechanical parts.
History shows that in the manufacture of their masterpieces, masters included other metals in a solution with copper. It turned out great connections. The bronze sculptures in the photo, which are presented in the article, are admirable.
For example, Gloucester candlestick. The bronze mixture is filled with zinc, tin, lead, nickel, antimony, arsenic, iron and a fairly weighty amount of silver. Most likely, the candlestick was made of old coins.
In the distant Bronze Age, different types of bronze were used to prepare products:
- Classic - 10% tin, plank weapons were made.
- Moderate - 6% tin, sheets rolled out of ingots, forged armor and helmets.
- Sculptural bronze - 90% copper and 10% tin, is used to this day to create masterpieces.
Bronze is an essential material along with marble. But more courageous works are made of bronze, which transmit strength and energy.
Cast sculpture
Bronze sculptures are still in great demand among wealthy people and are considered a sign of good taste. The properties of bronze make it possible to produce large and small items, conveying even the smallest details.
Durable material that can be easily minted, cast and forged has been known since ancient Egypt. People knew how bronze sculptures are cast.
This is done in three ways:
- Casting the mass into an empty mold. A very old method, use it to prepare the most elementary figures. Bronze is poured into a hollow form, left to solidify, and after the form is removed.
- Casting in parts (earthen method). The method allows you to use the form for pouring bronze many times. In this way sculptures were made in ancient Greece. This casting option has been improved and is still used today. The sculpture is poured by individual elements, then assembled and processed.
- Wax casting. A model of the future product is prepared using gypsum, wood, clay. The finished layout is coated with a special composition, and on top of it with silicone rubber. After 5-6 hours, the top layer hardens, and the grease allows it to be easily removed from the rubber form, keeping all the smallest details intact. Further, the rubber form is combined with a holistic and filled with liquid wax. When it hardens, a wax copy of the product comes out. A gate is attached to this copy, dipped in a ceramic solution, covered with stone powder and placed in an autoclave. After 10 minutes, the ceramic will harden and the wax will flow. Then, work comes with the ceramic mold. For two hours at a temperature of 850 degrees, it is burned and casting begins. The bronze alloy, heated to 1140 degrees, is poured through a sprue into a ceramic mold. The alloy freezes after a short period of time. The form is destroyed and the finished bronze sculpture is removed.
In addition to casting, a bronze sculpture can be knocked out of metal plates with a hammer.
Embossed sculpture
This type of manufacture of bronze products is called repository. On a fire, a sheet of metal is softened, by hammer blow on the inside they give the required convexity, gradually, blow after blow, outlines and details of the masterpiece appear. The master must have a good baggage of practice and dexterity.
Toning, patination and oxidation
Due to a certain chemical treatment, a colored protective coating forms on the surface of the bronze product. If the bronze figurine is small, then it is dipped in a container with a solution in full. Large sculptures must be carefully worked with a brush, foam rubber and sponge. To fix the film on the product, and so that it does not form, after washing and drying procedures, rub with a rag soaked in oil.
Now bronze products are regaining their popularity. Nowadays, you can meet expertly executed figures and figurines, in which the mood and every little thing is conveyed. They may well become part of a beautiful interior.