Customer Reviews

From Clay to Bronze: A Studio Guide to Figurative Sculpture

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The author is a talented sculptor in his own right. The book he has written provides a basic, overall picture of what it takes to get from a wax original to a finished, mounted bronze. Having owned and operated a commercial bronze art foundry many years ago with which I also cast my own pieces, I am painfully aware that, in the process addressed by this guide, at least 75% of the physical work in producing a bronze sculpture occurs within the confines of the foundry (the 'dirty work' as one reviewer called it). This is as good a basic guide as I have seen and would heartily recommend it to any sculptor who has never been directly involved in casting their own work (probably 95% of all such artists) and would like to start or to one who is thinking of beginning sculpting and wants a generalization of what to expect.

A list of suppliers is provided and their literature/catalogs should be required reading for anyone who desires to seriously pursue the production aspects. An area that was covered, but sparingly so, was that of patinas. This is a complicated subject matter that must be studied and practiced extensively before approaching (with due vigilance paid to personal/personnel safety).

I am a sculptor, well versed in bronze work and I love this book! Langland has written an emminently useful studio guide for sculptors interested in bronze casting. Whether you are experienced or a pure novice you will find useful information and handy hints, right from the most base material useage through to advice on setting up a studio of whatever calibre. The only thing that I feel might have been overlooked is information on how to tackle the irksome troubles of "drawback" where the bronze cools unevenly and pulls away from the mould. None-the-less, if you're looking for a comprehensive resource, this is it! (I should know, I've read a lot of these)So, buy it! Do it now!
p.s. A supurb comliment to this book is "Patinas for Silicone Bronze" by P. Kipper

First off, buy this book. I borrowed it from a friend and then ordered it promptly. I read every book that comes out that includes fabrication and mold making. This was a well organized, visually helpful and well written. The information in the book is solid...useful for students and those who have already logged a lot of bronze time. There is always room for improvements, but this book really holds its own. Hats off to all who worked on it. This one will be around for a long time.

I have been sculpting in bronze for nearly twenty years. Had I owned a copy of Tuck Langland's book when I started out, the quality of my bronzes would have taken a quantum leap, and I would have become a better instructor sooner. In my opinion, Mr. Langland has an excellent working knowledge of the sculpting process, and he presents it in an interesting and witty writing style. This is the best "how to" book on bronze sculpture I have seen.

This easy-to-read, well illustrated book is a must-have for studio artists who make sculpture. It's inspirational, it is packed full of precise instructions and references for purchasing supplies and tools, and it is carefully balanced. It is an excellent resource for all levels of artists -- even professionals with decades of experience can learn from Langland. Techniques such as using Superman's Whiskers will add great detail to the surface of your bronzes -- to find out just what this is, read the book!

This is the best resource I have found for a start to finish guide in sculpting. It explains all the dirty work realted with the art. I would like to warn people who are not interested in bronze, 7 out of 18 chapters deal completely with this subject.

This is a great overview of the whole bronze casting process. If I was teaching an sculpture class, I would use this book. Tuck Langland is both an acoumplished artist and an enthusiastic educator. I work at a foundry that has cast some of his monumental pieces, and I love it when he comes to check on his work. He is a very educated man who loves what he does. What more could you ask for?

I have sculpted for the past 15 or twenty years and bought this book specifically for the page that dealt with plaster piece molds. Unfortunately, piece mold making is a lost art and few books even attempt to describe them, never mind explain how to make them. I'm still not sure how to tackle piece molds of fully articulated figures, but relatively solid pieces, like the portrait head illustrated in the book, would be reasonable to attempt.

After receiving the book from Amazon, I was pleasantly surprised by the thoroughness of the book on a host of topics. Trust me, for anyone who is starting out, you can save yourself years of trial and error by referring to this book. In the chapter titled "modeling the figure" Langland explains the importance of building up slowly in "strings" that follow the forms of the muscles and stresses the importance of creating a solid pelvis, rib cage and head making sure that they align properly with the spine. I found myself nodding in agreement at countless points reading the book. It is remarkable how many processes and artistic concerns he manages to thoughtfully and clearly address throughout the book. As an example, Langland describes three methods to mark locations where holes will be drilled through a base to facilitate mounting a bronze sculpture. Now, this sounds like a very straightforward thing to do, but in practice it is a little tricky. Typically, underneath a bronze sculpture, a foundry will drill and tap two or more holes that can receive screws that pass through counter-bored holes in a stone or wood base. How would you locate hole centers in a blank base so that they will match the existing hole pattern in a bronze sculpture?

really good technical manual for the whole sculptural process, and clearly and simply written and illustrated. I would certainly recommend this book.

A very practical view of the processes involved in sculpture making.
The book is filled with practical tips and technical references.
The author shares, in a delightful manner, his passion and experience about sculptures.
It is a great reference even if you are only interested in parts of the process (i.e. Mold making, Finishing, Clay processing)