Cement Sculpture now with some colour - go to last post to see! - Other Crafts

N notiki Member Melbourne Australia Joined: Mar 05, 2013 Posts: 7	N notiki Posted posted on Wed, Mar 13, 2013 5:40 AM Hi All, I am pretty new around here and wanted to show some of my works carved and modelled from cement. I have been experimenting with different mixtures and techniques. I hope you enjoy the pictures and I look forward to hearing some feedback (hopefully good!) For the big sculptures its a thin layer of cement over foam blocks that have been carved to shape. I wrap the foam with basalt roving which is a rather exotic Soviet aerospace material. Think of it as string made from molten basalt rock (yes lava). It provides some reinforcing and helps stops the cement falling off. A four to five foot carving weighs about 100lbs when finished. The smaller wall hanging guys are solid cement roughly shaped on a flat board. After about 2 hours of setting I carve in the details. As the cement gets harder you can carve in finer details and refine the finish a bit. They have a lot of lightweight aggregate which makes carving a bit easier than sand and cement type mixes. The cylindrical guy is more like a palm wood carving. I cast a cylinder of cement and let it set for 4 hours. Then I striped the form off and carved and scraped away. I did a relief sculpture on the flip side so you can see what he is smiling about. Its a mix with more sand and has a rougher finish than the others. Next step is staining to bring out the detail and get away from the pale cement look and a sealer to give a bit of shine. Cheers Thom [ Edited by: notiki 2013-03-16 03:41 ] [ Edited by: notiki 2013-03-24 05:35 ] [ Edited by: notiki 2013-03-24 05:49 ] [ Edited by: notiki 2013-05-23 06:44 ]

Hi All,
I am pretty new around here and wanted to show some of my works carved and modelled from cement. I have been experimenting with different mixtures and techniques. I hope you enjoy the pictures and I look forward to hearing some feedback (hopefully good!)

For the big sculptures its a thin layer of cement over foam blocks that have been carved to shape. I wrap the foam with basalt roving which is a rather exotic Soviet aerospace material. Think of it as string made from molten basalt rock (yes lava). It provides some reinforcing and helps stops the cement falling off. A four to five foot carving weighs about 100lbs when finished.

The smaller wall hanging guys are solid cement roughly shaped on a flat board. After about 2 hours of setting I carve in the details. As the cement gets harder you can carve in finer details and refine the finish a bit. They have a lot of lightweight aggregate which makes carving a bit easier than sand and cement type mixes.

The cylindrical guy is more like a palm wood carving. I cast a cylinder of cement and let it set for 4 hours. Then I striped the form off and carved and scraped away. I did a relief sculpture on the flip side so you can see what he is smiling about. Its a mix with more sand and has a rougher finish than the others.

Next step is staining to bring out the detail and get away from the pale cement look and a sealer to give a bit of shine.

Cheers

Thom