American Fine Arts Foundry – AFA

Sculpting Kits. Who Knew?

American Fine Arts Foundry — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 05:52:20 +0000

We’ve been doing some thinking. Deep thinking. Well ok, not that deep. But we have been thinking…about kits. Yes, kits.

Think about it. Kits make life easy. There’s kits for seasoning a Butterball turkey. Kits for making your own chocolate. Heck, there’s even kits for making paper airplanes.

So we thought, why aren’t there kits for sculptors? You find them occasionally, here and there, but when you think about everything a sculptor needs to sculpt (clay, armature, tools, modeling stands…the list goes on) you’d expect to find more kits.

Why search for everything separately? That’s a hassle. So we decided—let’s make some kits. And then we did.

We have everything from basic kits, or what we call Quick Start Clay Sculpting Kits, to more advanced kits that included detailed step by step instructions from industry stalwarts like John Brown.

We like this whole kits idea, and we think you will too. Visit www.sculptclayandtools.com today to see what all the fuss is about.

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.

Marco Cochrane’s “Bliss Dance”

American Fine Arts Foundry — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 21:07:24 +0000

Marco Cochrane’s “Bliss Dance” sculpture is big. Really big. In fact, the artist had to rent a gigantic warehouse situated on San Francisco Bay’s Treasure Island, just to accommodate the size of the piece. But size is not what makes “Bliss Dance” unique.

Monument size statues lay peppered across the United States. They’re a dime a dozen. Heck, if you want size, look no further than the Statue of Liberty.

No, Marco Cochrane’s “Bliss Dance” relies on more than just sheer size, which at 40 feet is, admittedly, rather impressive. It relies on presentation.

Not content to merely create something large, something that demands attention, the artist chose to light the piece, not dramatically, but dynamically. And he did so in a way that both keeps the piece fresh and interesting, and allows for viewer input.

With Cochrane’s iPad and iPhone app, the viewer can select from a host of internal and external lighting options, ranging from the color of the lights to their intensity. This makes for not only beautiful art, but for a sense of user participation. And it’s this participation that really sets “Bliss Dance” apart.

More than that, though, it’s an example of the successful marriage of art and technology—something seldom seen in the 21^st century, what with programs like zbrush and mudbox largely replacing traditional sculpting efforts.

Hopefully, more will follow in Marco Cochrane’s footsteps, proving that traditional sculpture still has a place in this brave new world.

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.

MLB Heroes Honored in Bronze

American Fine Arts Foundry — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 19:11:02 +0000

There’s really nothing more American than baseball, is there? The sprawling field, the cheering fans, the national anthem—hot dogs. It’s a pastime we’ve cherished for over a hundred years. And what better way to celebrate such a storied tradition than with bronze, a medium that knows a thing or two about standing the test of time.

As our passion for the sport has grown, so too has the desire for bronze statues to commemorate the lives and careers of some of Baseball’s greatest figures.

Recently, the NY Times took note of our burgeoning interest in honoring MLB’s finest, and created a photo reel of some of the more prominent statues taking up residence in parks across the nation. Check them out here.

Photo Credit:Bill Mack

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.

Leonardo — The Master

American Fine Arts Foundry — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 02:15:52 +0000

Presented without comment.

Credit: teteargudo

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.

Isamu Noguchi Exhibit on Display at Laguna Art Museum

American Fine Arts Foundry — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 23:57:23 +0000

Enjoy art museums? We do. And living in Los Angeles, we’re surrounded by them, fortunately. If you, too, enjoy spending the day in the company of fine art, make your way over to Laguna Art Museum, where they’ll be featuring Isamu Noguchi, one of the twentieth century’s most important and critically acclaimed sculptors. An exhibition of his work, California Scenario: The Courage of Imagination, will be on display until October 12^th.

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.

Sculpting Saren in Sculpey

American Fine Arts Foundry — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 05:45:39 +0000

Fine art is great. We love fine art. But every once in a while, we like to give in to our geeky side. The one that says, “Wow, that’s a pretty cool Saren bust.” So yeah, consider this our indulgent post. Like eating a donut. Enjoy.

Credit: liadys

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.

Tyrion Lannister Castilene Wax Sculpture

American Fine Arts Foundry — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 23:39:43 +0000

Tyrion Lannister, the shrewd, calculating antihero of George R.R. Martin’s wildly popular A Song of Ice and Fire series is one of the most endearing, empathetic characters in the ASoIaF universe. Though he’s bound by blood to House Lannister, the House that brings death and ruin to our protagonists, House Stark, we root for him just the same, because he’s not flat, he’s not one dimensional. Over the course of five books, and some 5,000 pages, we learn what Tyrion’s loyalty earns him, and we begin to see that he, like the audience following his journey, is a man of complexity and ambiguity. Ultimately, we’re drawn to him because he’s human–a testament to Martin’s deft characterization.

This bust of Tyrion, sculpted by lixiaochenx277, aka Robin, manages in some small way to capture that humanity so eloquently wrought in Martin’s prose–no simple feat, to be sure–and so we’d like to offer him our congratulations. Excellent work, Robin! Also worthy of note is the scale in which the sculpt was done; look at the size of the X-Acto knife for comparison’s sake. For more of Robin’s work, visit his portfolio page on Deviantart.

Source: Deviantart

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.

Fun Summer Sculpture Project

American Fine Arts Foundry — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 00:13:35 +0000

Summer is a time for pools, BBQs, and cold drinks. A time for being outside, enjoying the warm summer sun, and reading those books on your nightstand you’ve been meaning to get to. Summer is also a time, however, for projects–especially the fun ones. Some build decks, others build custom made furniture, and still others rolls up their sleeves, break out the glue, and get to making arts and crafts. For those that fall in the latter category, here’s an interesting project to tackle, care of Instructables member, Saritamarianyc. Her step by step guide shows you how to make your very own Steampunk Mr. Potato Head, complete with wild mustache and monocle. How fun!

Here’s a list of needed supplies:

a cutting mat
X-Acto knife
hot-glue gun
Dremel Tool Kit
Premo Sculpey – Baking Clay
Thick card stock paper
Discarded materials around the house. Plastics, wire, metal piping, ect.
Black, yellow, silver, and copper acrylic paint
Paint brushes
Sandpaper

Credit: Instructables

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.

Medieval Bot Sculpture

American Fine Arts Foundry — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 18:25:25 +0000

Made from found objects, this bot is but one of many created by adoptabot. Check out his work in the link below.

Credit: adoptabot

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.

AFA Supplies Adds Sculpey Clay to Their Offering

American Fine Arts Foundry — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 04:45:03 +0000

You spoke. We listened. A short while ago we sent out an email to some of the most trusted names in sculpting, asking for feedback on our site, AFA Supplies, and how we might expand our inventory to offer more of what you, the artist, use in your work. Among the many responses we found a common thread–clay. You wanted more of it. Specifically, you wanted a wider selection.

Over the course of the past few months, we’ve come to discover that sculptors are fiercely loyal to their own brand of clay. And for good reason. Many of you have grown accustomed to the consistency, the malleability, and even the color of your clay. You know what strokes produce which results, and how much pressure produces the desired effect. In short, you know your clay inside and out.

So in the spirit of doing whatever it takes to offer sculptors the products they want and need, all in the same place, and all for a competitive price, we sought out Polyform Products, makers of the popular Sculpey Clay. A few weeks later, and presto, here we are, a proud reseller of Sculpey Products. Our first order was placed today, so the product should be up on the site shortly. Keep your eyes peeled, folks! This is just the beginning.

For serious sculptors looking for the best in clay sculpture tools and modeling clay please visit www.sculptclayandtools.com, or call us at 818-848-7593.