Bronze with patina. [ 30" x 12" x 6" ]
 

This bronze piece is unique from other lost-wax processes that I normally rely on. The piece was built in it's entirety from a dug up root and a wax cast of a shovel blade, attached together using both a snug fit and copper wire. Then it went through the ceramic shell dipping process, root and all. The root had many small holes drilled into the hardened coats of ceramic shell before it was burnt out to allow air to help burn the root. The wax melted and the root charred from inside the shell. Then at a high temperature I blew pressured air into the shell to push the charcoal to ash and out. As the hollow shell cooled it cracked and popped before it blew into 40 pieces. With the help of a friend we found and cleaned almost every piece and cemented the whole shell back together and completed a successful pour. Because this piece is not made from molds, it cannot be reproduced to the same extent of detail as this one and only bronze. The flashing was left on as a testimate to determination of both of the root and myself.