Batman sculpt in progress

Rough start of some batarangs for the Dark Knight to hurl at the bad guys. I intend to do three of them that will be held between his fingers.

Batman sculpt in progress

The Batman cape lives! I was able to get a decent casting in resin. It took a lot of patch work, cleaning and sanding to bring it up to a quality level but it looks good. It should look better primed and awesome painted. very cool.

Batman sculpt in progress

......Extracting the green Castilene cape sculpture did not go so smoothly.  The cape was destroyed as it proved to delicate to pull out in one piece. The undercuts were too deep, the cape too thin and fragile overall and I pulverized it. It was crushed, I was literally pouring Castilene dust out of the mold. super sad bummer time.

However, there is still hope for a decent casting of this problem child.....we shall see.

Batman sculpt in progress

After the rubber dried I extracted the green Castilene sculpture of the batman cape. You can see in this pic what the inside of the mold kinda looks like. The sculpt should slip in and out of the rubber like a hand from a glove........

Batman sculpt in progress

Pictured here is the Batman cape covered in another layer of brush-on rubber and the surrounding support mold. One thing to be concerned with when doing a brush-on mold is that it needs support or the material poured into it can cause the thin rubber to ballon out like putting water into a rubber glove.

I make a support out of a paste that dries to a hard plastic.  This gets sandwiched around the thin rubber mold. The mold itself should be able to stretch like a rubber glove to slide off my original green Castilene sculpture. I can then use the support shell to hold up the thin rubber mold and pour in a liquid resin for my final copy. super cool fun time!

Batman sculpt in progress

After much thought I decided to try a different molding method than what I was used to...brush on rubber. I thought doing a two piece mold would fail for a couple reasons. one, It would cost a ton of money in rubber for a two piece mold thick enough to work, and two, the undercuts are going to be a huge problem and potentially cause demolding issues...aka, the thing would get stuck in the mold.

pictured here is the cape with a layer of brush on rubber applied.

Batman sculpt in progress

I finish putting in some detail for the cape. I refine the folds and curves then try to give it a nice leather looking texture. Next stage is molding the bad boy......

Batman Sculpt in progress

Rear view of Batman figure assembled in resin and patched up with epoxy. Still a little work to be done on the body and the cape is in dire need of attention.

Batman Sculpt in progress

Batman figure reassembled in resin and patched up with epoxy. I need to do some overall clean up and sanding before painting.

Batman Sculpt in progress

A resin cast of the Batman figure head along side the silicone rubber mold it was extracted from.

Batman Sculpt in progress

Closer photo of a resin casting of Batman's arm extracted from the silcone rubber mold.

Batman Sculpt in progress

After refining the sculpture in green castilene it is time to mold it again and cast the figure in resin. This is a shot of the open two piece silicone rubber mold along side an extracted resin casting of Batman's arm.

Batman sculpt in progress

Batman's cape from a front overhead view. You can see more of the folds and tight wrinkles I'm sculpting from this angle. This cape is fun and challenging to sculpt. O.K. mostly challenging. It will look awesome when I'm done though!

Batman sculpt in progress

Another angle of the cape for the Batman statue in progress. Here you can see some of the folds and angles developing. You can also see some massive undercuts I've created that may pose some problems in the molding process but I'll cross that bridge when I get there...;)

Batman sculpt in progress

Front angle of Batman's cape. I'm trying to achieve realistic folds and draping of the cape but retain a fantasy element to it. Using wax and green Castilene I continue to refine and detail the forms of the cape. 

Batman sculpt in progress

The back of Batman's cape structure. sculpted in sheet wax and hard Castilene. It's shaping up little by little. I'm trying to get a lot of folds and complexity in this cape.

Batman sculpt in progress

Here I am getting pretty far into the sculpt of Batman's cape. I created the base shape with a sheet wax and then built up material with a layer of green Castilene. I used a waxer and heated metal tools to shape and refine the folds and wrinkles in the material. This cape is proving to be the most elaborate and difficult piece I've ever tackled. I hope it comes out the way I'm imagining it. whew, I'm tired.

Batman sculpt in progress

A detail of all the pieces to the Batman body for the statue I am sculpting. This stage was completed in green Castilene. I detailed and textured the material with heated wax working tools. These pieces are now ready to be molded and cast in a resin for the final stage of the statue. The cape is not included here of course, but it will be completed soon.

Batman sculpt in progress

Front view of the Batman head I am sculpting. I'm using Green Castilene for this stage of the sculpt. I'm trying to get that cross between Frank Miller's "The Dark Knight Returns" and Michael Keaton from Tim Burton film "Batman". I'm also trying to achieve a realistic take on the cowl overall, giving it a leather texture, seams and proportional eye slots that seem functional to me.

Batman sculpt in progress

Side view of the batman head I sculpted in hard green Castilene.

Batman sculpt in progress

Detail of the torso of the Dark Knight statue.  Sculpted in hard green Castilene. I used hot wax tools such as an electric waxer and metal sculpting tools heated by an alcohol torch for all the details. Heated sanding pads were also used to create some of the texture in the costume fabric. I decided to go with a traditional type of utility belt and the large bat chest emblem without the circle behind it. I always loved the plain large bat on his chest since I saw it depicted that way in Frank Miller's "The Dark Knight Returns."

Batman sculpt in progress

The underside of the boot design I created for The Dark Knight statue. I took this design from the boot sole pattern Jim Lee used on a cover of Frank Miller's All Star Batman comic.

Batman sculpt in progress

A detail of the boot design and texture I created for the Batman Statue I am working on.

Batman sculpt in progress

Another detail of the Batman head in hard green Castilene.

Batman sculpt in progress

Here is a detail of the Batman Head after it had been cast in hard green Castilene and refined with wax tools and textures.

Batman sculpt in progress

I create silicone rubber molds of the soft castilene pieces of the Batman figure. I will pour a harder castilene into these molds. Once I extract the harder castilene I can then refine the sculpt to the finish.

Batman sculpt in progress

Now that I have blocked out the pose I wanted and the placement of muscle groups and costume elements I cut the figure up for molding

Batman Sculpt in progress

Rear angle shot of the Dark Knight sculpt showing some motion in the cape and some details forming in the arm and hand areas.

Batman Sculpt in progress

I'm still in the rough sculpture stage here as I lay in some Castilene to block out where I Want Batman's cape to lay and fold on the figure. I also block in where I intend to place some batarangs in his hand.

Batman Sculpt in progress

I'm still refining the overall sculpt and now beginning to block out the way I want the cape to fold and flow around the crusaders body.  The cape will be sculpted with a combination of soft pink castilene and wax.

Batman Sculpt in progress

I continue to sculpt in the softer castilene and shape up the forms of Batman's muscles and costume elements. I am now carving and smoothing the material with heated metal tools because the castilene behaves like a wax when cooled. I have to be careful though as the pink castilene does not harden to a complete solid and the warmth form my hands along with the heat from my work lamps can soften the material. If not careful the detail sculpted can be smooshed or dented.

Batman Statue in progress

Still in the first stage of sculpting I begin to block out and refine some details in the softer pink castilene. I really focus on the design and placement of the bat emblem for the dark knight's chest. I also block in a concept for the utility belt settling on a classic look with the tube compartments along the belts edge with a nice bat emblem buckle to tie it all together.

Batman sculpt in progress

 

This is the first stage of sculpture for my Batman figure. In this stage I work out the pose and proportions I want, I also block in some points for later detail. This stage is done in a semi soft pink Castilene. This type of castilene is excellent for this stage because it is soft when warmed up and acts like a clay, so I can push it around and get the desired gesture. When the castilene cools down it becomes harder and will maintain its shape and bare most of the sculptures weight without need for an armature. Working this way allows me freedom to change poses and move things around without being confined to an armature.

Batman Statue in progress

This is the first stage of sculpture for my Batman figure. In this stage I work out the pose and proportions I want, I also block in some points for later detail. This stage is done in a semi soft pink Castilene. This type of castilene is excellent for this stage because it is soft when warmed up and acts like a clay, so I can push it around and get the desired gesture. When the castilene cools down it becomes harder and will maintain its shape and bare most of the sculptures weight without need for an armature. Working this way allows me freedom to change poses and move things around without being confined to an armature.

Batman Statue

Batman statue in progress. 1st stage sculpture.