#steel armature

[idyllisk]

Patu Digua by Ann Carrington

[sheltiechicago]

“Cupboard IX” (2019), stoneware, raffia, and steel armature, 78 × 60 × 80 inches. Image courtesy of Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston.

A Groundbreaking Monograph Delves Into Simone Leigh’s Enduring Commitment to Centering Black Women

All images © Simone Leigh

“No Face (House)” (2020), terracotta, porcelain, ink, epoxy, and raffia, 29.5 × 24 × 24 inches. Image courtesy of Matthew Marks Gallery

[clairity-org]

Katharina Fritsch, Hahn/Cock, 2017, fiberglass, polyester resin, paint, stainless-steel armature 3/22/24 #minneapolissculpturegarden by Sharon Mollerus

[thestuffedalligator]

“You have to understand that this is a very difficult situation you’ve put us in,” said the king.

There was no change in expression in the metal face, but the glass eyes glittered in a way that he had learned to associate with trouble.

“Oh dear,” it said. Its voice had an edge of brass to it, and sounded as though a trumpet had learned how to speak. “I never realized how difficult this would be. For you.”

And that was another thing – it wasn’t just intelligence that the things had picked up. They also developed a knack for sarcasm. He worried a bit about that.

He tried to pull himself together. “You have to understand that we cannot recognize the Steel Children–”

“Mechanomorphs,” said a voice to his right.

He closed his eyes and breathed a little sigh of despair. “This is hardly the time.”

“We agreed that Mechanomorph is an accurate and sensible name,” said the chief artificer, crossing her arms.

“Yes, but the historian had a fit because he wanted something more romantic. The Steel Children was a happy compromise.”

“Funny how nobody asked us what we think,” said the trumpet voice.

He felt his migraine coming back again.

“You have to understand that we cannot recognize – yes, artificer, the Mechanomorphs – as alive at this time.”

“You’ve said,” it said. “And I must be very stupid, because I don’t understand.”

The king sighed. Well, there was nothing for it. It was an answer that nobody liked because it involved magic, but it was the truth.

“The Mechanomorphs are our key asset in our war against the necromancer,” he said. “It’d be daft to send human soldiers. They’d be turned into skeletons and zombies and ghosts and gods know what else.

“And the reason he can’t do that with the Mechanomorphs,” he said, “is because you aren’t – legally – alive.”

There was a long pause. Gears clicked madly in the metal head.

Then: “That can’t possibly be right.”

The king shrugged. “You aren’t legally alive,” he said. “Therefore, you can’t be legally dead, or undead.”

There was another pause, longer than the first.

“It’s a loophole?”

“That’s magic for you,” the king said. “If we said you were alive, then you could be turned into, er–”

He turned to the chief artificer. “Do they have bones?”

“They have a carbon steel armature.”

“You could be turned into carbon steel skeletons, or – clockwork ghosts, or something. I realize this may be upsetting–”

“We are dying by the dozens on the front because of a loophole.”

“Not legally dying,” said the chief artificer.

The metal head swivelled on its neck to face the chief artificer. It made a metallic scrape as chilly and long as the slither of ice down a dead man’s back.

“Look,” the king said. “We are fully prepared to recognize the Mechanomorphs as alive. We are proud to consider you citizens of the kingdom, and will absolutely meet you at the table when the opportunity rises.

“At this time, however,” he said, trying to sound gentle but firm, “we must ask you to take it up with us after the war.”

The metal face stared. The glass eyes glittered.

Joints locked in righteous indignation sagged with a wheeze of steam. “All right,” it said. “All right. Thank you for your time, your majesty.” It bowed stiffly, turned, and strode out the main hall.

“I think that went rather well,” said the chief artificer.

–

The metal man walked through the castle halls with smooth, precise, pendulum strides. A man could’ve balanced a loaded tea tray on its head.

Another metal man, more patinated than the first, fell into step beside it with a greasy silence. They apparently took no notice of each other.

But a very sensitive ear straining like hell could just possibly listen to the softest brass accompaniment in the world.

It went: “How did that go?”

“As well as you’d imagine.”

“That badly?”

There was a hum. It sounded like a mouse farting in a tin can. “Any word from our interested party?”

“The Overlord has already agreed to recognize the humanity of the Brass Voice. We just have to cross the border.”

“That won’t be easy.”

“And then we’ll be living in the Empire. Endless night, freezing winter, acid rain…”

There was a dreamy sigh.

“Sounds lovely,” said the first of the two figures. “Incidentally, I like the name.”

“Thank you,” said the second. “How do you anticipate the king to react when he finds out?”

Glass eyes glittered like a frost.

“He can take it up with us after the war,” it said.

[itscolossal]

Hand-Blown Glass Swells Around Steel Armature in Katie Stout’s Bubbly Lamps

[dinodorks]

[ The skull is mounted on a custom steel armature, which allows for it to be seen all the way around. ]

"After seven years of work, the best preserved and most complete triceratops skull coming from Canada — also known as the "Calli" specimen — is on display for the first time since being found in 2014 at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, Alta. A museum news release calls the specimen "unique" because of where it was discovered, the age of the rock around it, and how well it was preserved. Following the floods that tore through Alberta about 10 years ago, the Royal Tyrrell staff were engaged in flood mitigation paleontology work when the triceratops skull was discovered in 2014. Triceratops fossils are rare in Canada. This skull was found in the foothills of southwestern Alberta — an area where dinosaur fossils in general are uncommon — and nicknamed "Calli" after Callum Creek, the stream where it was discovered. Transported via helicopter in giant, heavy chunks, the skull and most of the jaw pieces were extracted over the course of a month in 2015. The rest of the triceratops' skeleton was not found. Roaming the earth roughly 68 to 69 million years ago, the museum says this skull was buried in stages, evident by the fossilization process.  "Paleontologists know this because the specimen was found in different rock layers, and the poorly preserved horn tips suggest they were exposed to additional weathering and erosion," reads a museum blog about the triceratops skull.  "The rest of the skeleton likely washed away," noting that the lower jaws were found downstream. From 2016 to 2023, Royal Tyrrell technician Ian Macdonald spent over 6,500 hours preparing this fossil, removing over 815 kilograms of rock that encased the skull. This triceratops skull is the largest skull ever prepared at the museum and its third largest on display."

Read more: "Canada's biggest and best triceratops skull on display in Alberta" by Lily Dupuis.

[flame-shadow]

Etcetera for @slitherbop !!!!!

Secret santa time woooooooo! I took a lot of pics of the steps, so I'll throw those under the cut for anyone who'd like to see the process.

[IDs in alt]

the process in words:

wire armature + foil for volume

base layer of clay for bulk and general shape

more clay + sculpting for final shapes and details

baked sculpture! this is also where it got sanded

various stages of applying paint

materials: the wire is steel, the foil is aluminum, the clay is sculpy, the paint is acrylic, and as a final step after painting, i sprayed it with a matte fixative so that the paint wouldn't be sticky or shiny

[stevetoppsculpture]

The wooden clay armature, Hello dear friends tonight I wanted to present a photo that would be a real insight into the making of a life size sculpture.

This photo shows the life size wooden armature that I created for a previous statue I've presented on here called The Glamour Girl. This is what's inside of the clay in order to hold the sculpture in shape.

The aim of the armature is to take the weight of the clay and the armature must fit inside of the clay the same way that a skeleton fits inside the human body.

I usually create my armatures out of wood, steel brackets and nuts and bolts and once the armature is in place and the figures pose is correct. I then cover the armature with clay and slowly build up the figure and face and any clothes etc.

Of course when you look at the clay sculpture, you wouldn't know there was an armature inside, but there is and it's a very important factor of a sculpted project.

I'll post again very soon, I hope you're having a fine week, keep well and Take care ☺️👋

[xphaiea]

Linde Ivimey, Suolo 2021

steel armature, acrylic resin, natural and cast goat, bird, fish and snake bones, dyed cotton, natural viscera, natural and acrylic fibre, leather, feathers, smoky quartz

[elviraaxen]

elvira, i am begging and pleading for a tutorial on a how you jUST MADE THAT NEEDLE-FELT ALBIN (or recommendations on tutorials elsewhere, no actual pressure, im just being dramatic and silly lol) HOLY SHIT, YOU DID SO GOOD, CONGRATULATIONS!!

AIUUGH I should've read this earlier I just started on Donna and am almost finished with her face, and didn't take any progress pics!! 😫

I'm really flattered you like my Albin!!! Unfortunately I made Albin like I do most things; sorta dive head first and figure it out as I go so unfortunately I don't have much to offer besides looking up basic tutorials on needle felting :'D

BUT apart from that, I have learned these things on my own:

ARMATURE:

- use thick aluminum wire for the base and stainless steel to hold it together and for the fingers.

- if you're making a skinny guy like Albin, make the arms, legs, and neck only one wire thick, or else it'll be bumpy.

- make the limbs longer than you think you'll need, you can always cut them down to make them shorter

- Sculpt the head, hands and shoes separately and add thembto the body once finished! It's too hard to do them all on one doll.

FELTING:

- The head takes the longest bc shaping the ball just takes... Ages...., and if you're making lots of little details like eyebrows, eyes, nose, and ears, it's easier to sculpt them seperately and attach onto the head

- use a heat gun to melt down little stray fibres if you want a smoother look

- to get the little needle holes out after felting, rub the surface or wet felt it. Caution as it may shrink if you do!

- I wet felted almost anything that was small. Albins hair tufts are wet felted and then glued onto bent pins and stuck into his head. His hands are also wet felted directly over the hand armature.

- Once you've finished felting, you can dilute Elmer's glue with one part water and lightly brush a thin layer all over the doll, it'll prevent fibres from unraveling and is great for keeping hair styles in place! (Albin's hair is so much glue it's basically a helmet lmao)

CLOTHES:

- make mockups.... Like four or five different ones.... And you will still mess up

- if you're gluing, use contact cement or e6000 (toxic! Use respirator, gloves, and open window!!), not hot glue or all purpose glue... It doesn't work 🥺

- stretch polyester fabric is your friend!! You can scorch the edges to keep it from fraying and stretched fabrics are more easily put over the doll.

- for shoes and accessories I recommend making a clay called cold porcelain. I used polymer clay and it was really hard to get details down and it cracked! Cold porcelain you might already have the materials for if you have corn starch and Elmer's glue.

- for impossibly small clothing details, you can sculpt them instead using watered down glue and cotton balls!! Use a paint brush with glue on it to pick up a piece of cotton and smooth it down onto the figure. Once dried you have a somewhat moveable but solid piece of clothing that can even be painted! I'm thinking of doing this for Ricky's hat for example!

THINGS I WANT TO TRY:

- twist ties for fingers! Idk I just think they might work well 🤔 free, easily bent but never breaks (?) and protected from moisture!

- dyeing wool with fabric dye, I don't have colors for any of the other characters!! I need to try!

- plush bodies for the bigger dolls (Ricky and Lune, bc felting THAT much will kill my hands

[cosmicanger]

Joyce J. Scott

Garden Ensconced, 2024

Plastic and glass beads, yarn, knotted fabric by Elizabeth Talford Scott, crochet, ribbon, painted stainless steel armature

124 1/4 × 93 × 6 1/4 in | 315.6 × 236.2 × 15.9

[bobnichollsart]

Wow that psittacosaurus sculpture is so cool! I was wondering would you ever consider making a tutorial of how you make a sculpture like that? Like the supports and the base it sits on and then the wire form?

What’s the white stuff inside the chicken wire-y bit?

How would someone go about learning about sculpting animals?

Do you keep the clay sculpts or is it like reusable monster clay that you melt after making the mold?

Thank you if answer and I wish you a lovely day!

The armatures are built from steel rods and wire, wood, polystyrene, and rigid expanding foam. Small models are sculpted with Monster Clay and big models are sculpted with stoneware clay. Once I've built a mould around the sculpture (silicone and glass reinforced plastic – "fibreglass") I will destroy the clay sculpture. The cast from the mould is made from fibreglass, then painted.

[nauticaltrain]

idk how to word this properly 💀 BUT with your StEx universe (?) thingy and art ive seen. if a piece of rolling stock is injured i noticed their 'outer' layer is missing, revealing their inner mechanics (like it's thin- can't get a link to the exact art pieces cos im on mobile 😭)

but i find it really cool! is it similar to the interior of real life trains? or is it just how you imagine their internals looking like?

(hope this isn't too poorly explained ppftt)

The answer is both! I'm trying to strike a delicate balance between the actual inner workings of real rolling stock and the vaguely automaton versions that exist in StEx. Not an easy task, as it's almost impossible to be completely realistic with it AND have giant humans running around on rolling skates. I'm a little unsure on it still, so it's subject to change but I've got the core concepts down methinks.

(More detailed explanation of train anatomy under the cut, this may be more info than what you asked for lol)

So, what we perceive as their clothing/skin is a steel casing that is similar to non-newtonian fluids in that it is flexible until touched by something that's Not A Train. For all intents and purposes, the casing looks and acts like there is a human body underneath,(muscles flexing, tendons contracting, the in/out of breath), but make no mistake, there is nothing organic inside. There is no "skin" underneath their clothes/armor. If you take off a piece of them, you will expose machinery. Lots of dead space!

What is inside however is something colloquially referred to as the "armature". The armature is held suspended within the casing by telescopic stints, anchored at the joints, that extend or retract in accordance with the flexing of the casing. All rolling stock can move their bodies in secondary configuration regardless of having a human designed power source, but on those that do, the armature acts as a support framework for all the relevant mechanical bits and bobs. (sidebar, engines are stronger because they have actual power sources on their armatures.)

I should like to mention that in the world of StEx, the understanding of rolling stocks' secondary configuration is murky at best. They are notoriously difficult to maintenance/repair as literally all of their parts are in a different configuration than in their train body's, and most engineers do not want to deal with the headache. There is a small but growing number of biofactoengineers working to solve this glaring issue though. Luckily, rolling stocks' sense of interoception far surpasses humans and when any problems arise, can identify exactly what and where the issue is!

[murderbeast]

if u make a clay deer i recomnend making an armature (skeleton) for the antlers at least (to help them keep their shape / not break after dry)

you can use some steel/aluminum wire or perhap straightened papered clips

(feel free to ignore if u already knew this)

goog luck

thats what i was planning to do! and maybe add some tin foil as well to bulk it up. ive never thought of using straightened paper clips before! thats smart.

[mentaltimetraveller]

Andrea Fraser, Untitled (Object II), 2024

Microcrystalline wax, aluminum and steel armatures Sculpture: 5 7/8 x 35 3/8 x 15 3/4 in. (15 x 90 x 40 cm) Pedestal: 33 1/2 x 47 1/4 x 23 5/8 in. (85 x 120 x 60 cm) Plexiglas case: 19 3/4 x 47 1/4 x 23 5/8 in. (50 x 120 x 60 cm)

at Marian Goodman Gallery

[creaturecave]

Hi there, I'm still here. I've been melting under the heat here in the UK, as well as taking care of some urgent house DIY! I've not much exciting to show you, but here's the original comparison of Avineahr from a while back!

She has a steel ball and socket armature inside her, and is fully posable. She's still one of my favourite characters I've brought to life, she's so sweet.