Gold Dreamin' Sculpture

Click to watch an interview with Artist Joe Cipri

Colorado native Joe Cipri said for this project he imagined a miner emerging from an old mine, feeling exhausted at the end of a hard day’s work. Cipri first sculpted this figure out of clay, then used latex rubber to create a mold of the sculpture, in which he poured a ¼ inch thick layer of wax, followed by a batter of liquid ceramic. The sculpture was separated into 24 different pieces that were individually heated up to burn out the wax and create a void. Liquid bronze then filled the void and the pieces were welded together. After grinding down the seams, a patina was added to give the entire sculpture an aged appearance. During this process, Cipri made minor adjustments to the facial expressions, focusing on the tired, worn appearance of the miner’s eyes.