Wikipedia: The lost-wax technique is an ancient art that dates back over 2,000 years or older in India, China, and Egypt. In the 15th century it was used by the likes of Donatello for the making large-scale bronze statues. Bowls and plates made with intricate etchings are made using other methods.
Process
First, the artisan creates a sculpture using wax made from beeswax and paraffin. Three different compositions of river-based clay are then poured over it, two times each. Two nali or openings are molded at one end of each piece.
Thirty-six to forty crucibles of brass and bronze metal are arranged at the bottom of a five-foot cylindrical brick oven. Placed over these are the clay molds containing the wax figures.
The cylindrical oven is so deep that one of the workmen must go into the oven to lay the raw clay structures. When the crucibles and molds are in place, the oven is fired up. A great mass of smoke rises from the open-top oven, taking the form of a miniature Hiroshima explosion.
A 20-foot high flame created by the burning wax discharging from the clay molds eventually replaces the smoke. At this point, the oven has heated between 175-200 centigrade.
In the end, none of the wax will remain leaving behind hollow molds. From here arises the term “lost wax”.
Two and a half-hours after firing up of the oven, the metal starts melting at a scorching 1000 centigrade.
Once the metal is liquidified, the scalding hot clay molds are removed from the oven using six-foot long tongs. The empty molds are turned over to expose the nalis and the red-hot molten metal is poured in.
After the metal cools down and takes solid form, the outer clay of each mold is chiseled away to reveal a silvery brass statue, a replica of the original wax sculpture.
The figure is filed and polished.
Lastly, chemicals are added to its surface to give the metal its characteristic patina. The statues are fit for display.
Material
Most of the figures are made from bronze (a copper and tin alloy) or brass (a copper and zinc alloy). Hindu figures are made out of eight metals believed to have an auspicious connection to the planets. The eight metals are: copper, zinc, tin, iron, lead, mercury, gold and silver.
The Wax Artisan
Once a dying art, metal-casting is being revived by Sukanta Banik, whose business in Dhamrai has been in the family for five generations. Until recently, Banik’s forefathers had been making household items with brass and bronze — kasha and pittal. But in 1971, Sukanta’s uncle Shakhi Gopal Banik and his partner, Mosharraf Hossein, changed direction and started producing works of art: figures from Hindu mythology and folk art as well as Buddhist and Jain sculptures.
During Durga Puja season most of the artisans go home to work on clay murtis for their family business. “Wax figures are harder to work on than clay ones because we do replicas of museum designs, but clay murtis are our own creation,” says Gautam Pal, the sole remaining artisan of the season.
Designs of the gods and goddesses
Designs of the gods and goddesses are based on the art of the Pala dynasty. They tend to be very intricate, and stand distinguished from statues made elsewhere,
The lost-wax technique allows helps Banik’s artisans create more pronounced detailing. In contrast to most Indian statues, whose details are etched onto the solid metal form, the details of one of Banik’s statues are made on the soft wax at the initial stages of the sculpting, using soft wax thread, which is then carved into with a bamboo stick. Thus, the embellishments take on a three-dimensional quality.
Murtis from India also differ in that they are usually made from a Master mold.
We must attempt to preserve this age-old tradition, not just in Dhamrai, but in other centers like Jamalpur, Islampur, Tangail, Kushtia, and Dhaka. In the words of friend and supporter, Matt Friedman, “If [the metal casting] trade is someday lost, an important part of Bangladesh’s artistic tradition will vanish forever.” Hats off to Mr. Banik for bringing this decidedly Bangalee tradition back to life (Manisha Gangopadhyay, November 8, 2004).
Hello. I am looking for artisans or ateliers which work with wax in India and other parts of the world to a documentary that I want to produce next winter. Any help will be welcome. Thanks.