Lion Mask
Oil based clay casted into latex and plaster
Lion Mask
Oil based clay casted into latex and plaster
January - March 2015
Personal Project
About The Project:
Technology & Mediums:
Latex, Oil Clay, Plaster, Rubber Vulcanizing Mold
This is a mask I made for a stage craft class meant to be worn by dancers in a performance. Each performer was supposed to embody an animal and an element so I selected lion and fire. This lead me to be inspired by Japanese Komainu (lion dog) statues and I incorporated that imagery into the mask.
To make the mask comfortable and durable for the performer, I decided to make a latex cast of my original sculpture of the mask. However, latex masks aren't rigid enough to be displayed on their own and I wanted to learn more about mold making so I also made a hard cast of the mask out of plaster.
Technology & Mediums:
January - March 2015
PROCESS:
Initial Sculpture
The initial sculpture was created by taking a plaster cast of my face and then building the mask up on top of the cast with oil based clay. I used a variety of Komainu statues and Japanese demon masks as inspiration.
Making the Mold
I made two different molds so I could make latex and plaster casts of the mask. To make a plaster mold that I could use to make latex casts, I painted plaster over the original sculpture and waited for it do dry. I then very carefully removed the mask from the mold, and fixed some damaged parts so I could make another mold of it.
I used a vulcanized rubber mold for the second mold and encased it in plaster to hold its shape. Because the mold was flexible I could make hard casts of the mask and remove them from the mold with relative ease.
Hard and Soft Casts
I was able to make both hard casts of the mask in plaster and soft casts in latex. The latex mask (left) is meant to be worn by a performer and is painted with mix of acrylic paint and latex. The plaster cast (left) is meant to be displayed and is painted with acrylic paint.