Pmc sculpture

[Amelia]

Hello!  I'm new to this forum.  I ran across it doing research on PMC.  I'd like to know if anyone out there does figurative sculpture in PMC?  Not particularly "miniatures" but small sculptures?  I'm entertaining the idea of giving it a try.  I'm a bronze sculptor looking to try something new.  Any input will be appreciated  '>

[Metalman]

Amelia,
Most of the work I have seen would probably be what you might call miniature.  The material is rather expensive so scale is a real factor. My partner Margot Casstevens and I, both do a certain amount of figurative related work that we think of as small sculpture but we have probably not gotten any larger then 4".

Just a note: there are 2 manufacturers, making 2 distinct product lines. Rings & Things carries the Art Clay Silver [ACS] products.  PMC and ACS are essentially the same, a silver particulate based metal clay material. Firing and workability varies between them abit.check this link for more discussion:
http://www.rings-things.com/rtnews/why-acs.html

Size is also limited by the room within the kiln to fire the piece, even if money was no object!

That being said, you could try building the general form with a combustible material, such as cork clay, and then applying the silver clay over the surface of that.  This would give you a hollow form in the end, but it would also reduce the cost, and ensure complete firing of the object.

Judy
My Webpage

[Metalman]

Another way to work with ACS products on a larger scale is to use a ceramic base. I have had great results using porcelain and fired ceramics as a base for the Art Clay Silver Overlay Paste.  I prefer finish fired materials rather then bisque.
You just paint a couple of layers on and fire. On larger and/or complex forms and shapes, the ~9% shrinkage will sometimes cause splits in the surface. Paint additional layers and refire - should be good to go. Sometimes you may need to do 2 or 3 firings to get the finish you want.
Once you have a layer of Overlay Paste you can build further with regular clay, syringe or connect in silver wire fittings. The Overlay paste works as an interface between the base material [ceramic or glass] and the metal clay and other metals.
This method allows for larger artworks built of a base material with a great silver surface look

[picturejewelry.com]

The biggest problem with doing scupltures is you are going to have to deal with the shrinkage which in my opinion gets unweilding when deal with varying thichness in pieces