The Process of Casting Glass
"What I enjoy most about glass casting is the variety of tasks and skills required to finish a piece - drawing, sculpting, mathematics, a steady hand and a complete thought process".These are the steps Glass Artist Di Tocker takes to create a Cast Glass Artwork using the Lost Wax Method
- create a model from wax
- hand build a kiln mould from plaster/silica around the wax model
- steam the wax out of the kiln mould
- weigh and clean the lead crystal, pack in a terracotta pot
- place the kiln mould in the kiln with the terracotta above
- set the kiln controller to desired firing schedule (minimum 1 week)
- unpack the kiln, discard the terracotta pot (1 use only)
- remove the mould from the glass
- cut the base off the glass with diamond saw
- grind the base by handlapping with four grades of grit
- soak glass in polish dip for 8 hours
- polish flat areas (base) with cerium oxide
- engrave signature and code on the base
- photograph
- catalogue