AN EXPLANATION OF THE 'SQUARITY' SHOW
Sculpture is one of the oldest forms of art. Examples of 'Relief' sculpture can be found in ancient cultures from all over the world and is also widely used today. 'Relief' sculpture comes in three main types;
Bas Relief - Or low relief, is where the overall projecting image is shallow and the background is compressed or flat. The detail found on coins are 'bas relief'.
High Relief - where 50% or more of the projecting image is undercut and rendered to the background. Examples of 'high relief' are most commonly found on memorials.
Sunken Relief - or hollow relief, is when the image is made by carving into a flat surface, directional light is very important to its effectiveness. Ancient Egyptian Art is a excellent example of 'sunken relief'.
Squarity is a celebration of 'Relief' sculpture. I selected artists who have a strong aesthetic and I believed could translate these elements to a 'Relief' sculpture. Each artist worked to a brief 'Bas Relief'. However during the 'working time' (over 6 months) of this project all aspects of 'relief' sculpture where covered by the group of nine artists. Some used clay to model, layers of card, foam board, 'found' objects, cnc, wax and even match sticks to create their sculpture.
Once the 'original' sculpture had been completed, the moulding process began. Shellac polish was used on all the original sculptures to 'seal' the porous elements and create a barrier between the material used and the 'silicone rubber' to make the mould.
Each sculpture was enclosed in an open top box (watertight), to which high grade silicone rubber was brushed and poured. The silicone was allowed to cure for 24 hours, the box was removed and the rubber mould peeled from the original sculpture.
Hand mixed polyester and polyurethane resins where combined with lightweight powder to cast reproductions. Each casting had to be made in two stages. The first stage was a thin coating of brushed resin in to the detailed parts of the mould. Second stage; a 'bulked' (with powder) resin was poured in behind and allowed to cure. This process was repeated 9-14 times.
Once the casts had been made each one was cleaned up, excess resin trimmed, the edges sanded and then painted in a base coat. Each artist was given their nine casts back to hand finish with paint effects and signed on the reverse.