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Lost Wax Casting and Mold Making
Lost wax casting techniques have been used by jewelers for thousands of years to create volumetric metal forms through wax working, molding, and pouring molten metal.
In this weekly class students will learn how to carve and shape wax, how to mold certain applicable objects in silicone molds for fast duplicates and production work, how to sprue (or attach) the wax objects for investing and casting, how to then properly and safely cast the wax in metal, and finally how to clean up and finish the metal castings. Students can expect to walk away with several pieces of cast jewelry or small-scale metal objects.
Students are invited to bring in objects (roughly within a 1"x1" dimension) they would be interested in molding and making duplicates of - note, not all objects work well with the molding process and the instructor will help you appraise whether your pieces can be molded or not.
Meet the instructor
William Vanaria is a Massachusetts based artist with a penchant for oddball materials. His work utilizes traditional metalsmithing techniques and a wide verity of non-traditional materials to produce jewelry which both questions and comments on notions of romanticism, value, fakery, and the hierarchy of materials present within modern day consumer culture. Through his work he pushes for a broader system of value which has been formulated though experience, consideration, and critical thinking.
William received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design with a concentration in "Jewelry & Metalsmithing" in 2012. Afterwards, he spent time working within the jewelry industry and volunteering as a teacher's assistant for various art institutions. He found that the latter was much more fulfilling, so he went on to further his education within the arts and to pursue a career in teaching. William received his Masters of Fine Arts degree from the University of Massachusetts: Dartmouth in 2016; once again with a concentration in "Jewelry & Metalsmithing."
Materials & Tools
There is a $69 materials fee for this workshop that is payable upon registration. The materials kit fee covers investment agent, sterling silver casting grain, bronze casting grain, sawblades (#2), spiral sawblades (#2), heatless mizzy wheels, wax carving starter kit, tube wax (green, purple, blue), flat top wax (green, purple, blue), injection wax, silicone rubber molding agent, and other various miscellaneous items needed for course objectives.
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object they wish to mold - roughly within 1"x1" dimension
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sketchbook/notebook
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writing utensil
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closed-toe shoes - required in Metalwerx studio