At the time Norman Lindsay and Rayner Hoff were producing sculpture, Australian sculptors had to send their work abroad for casting. The cost was prohibitive and so few artists ever saw their work cast in bronze during their lifetime. Today, there are several fine Australian foundries.
The Josef Lebovic Gallery and Odana Editions chose the Melbourne foundry, Meridian, to produce the sculpture editions. Meridian has been operating since 1973 and is the largest lost-wax foundry in Australia, with wide experience in producing high quality work for many artists.
Traditionally sculpture has been produced either as a single piece or in very small editions. As such, it has been difficult for collectors to acquire sculpture at an affordable price. We believe that by casting in larger editions more people will be able to own a fine piece of sculpture. The process of producing these bronzes ensures that the quality remains uniformly high throughout the whole edition.
Bronze casting, one of the oldest methods of reproduction, has remained essentially unchanged since the Renaissance. First, a silicon rubber mould is made directly from the original plaster. A wax cast is then made from this mould and a 'runner and riser' system is attached to it. The wax is then covered with a refactory, a plaster and water mix that is built up layer by layer until the shell is cylindrical in shape. This is kiln-fired for 48 hours to drive off water and "burn out" the wax. Molten bronze is then poured into the wax cavity. Imperfections in the castings are hand-finished. Finally the patina, a multi-layered chemical process which affects the colour of the finished bronze, is applied.
Sculpture on this page is for sale from Odana Editions.