Info Please

[madpencil]

Hey guys Im an illustrator interested in getting into sculpting, can you guys tell me what that pinkish material is that the people at ILM and other places use? Also what do you recommend to be the best tools? Where can I buy this pink sculpting material? Thanks.

[King-Vitaman]

I'm not sure about what they use at ILM, but the pink stuff that I use, and which seems to be the most popular for beginners is Sculpey or Super Sculpey or Super Sculey III or another such variation. It is not messy, it's easy to work with, inexpensive, and doesnt set until you want it to.

You can buy it at almost any craft store, there are several places to buy it on the net but I bet you can pick some up within a few miles from your home for the same price. A large quantity costs between $8 and $12.

I have only used pretty basic tools to work with it since I am not to experienced, but they seem to work well. My local craft store sold me a little set for a couple bucks. They are basically just oddly shaped sticks, some with sharp ends and some with rounded and several variations of shape and size. I also use a hunting knife and tooth-picks.


You take a piece and work it a bit, its pretty hard at first but if you stretch it and squeeze it a bit it becomes softer. As soon as you have shaped it into your sculpture, you cook it in your oven for 15-30 minutes, depending on size. It comes out and you can paint it with any acrylic paint.

So, for a beginner, I'd say that Sculpey is a good investment, for under $20 you can get started and grasp the basics of sculpting without worrying about stuff cracking and exploding and such. Hope this helps some.

[madpencil]

I'm talking about this stuff. Check out this link. Does anyone know what material this is.

http://www.starwars.com/episode-ii/feature/20030204/indexp7.html

[Deth Jester]

good place to start

I am sure they use some form of Sculpey... I have no clue what they use though..

But mixing Super Sculpey with Sculpey III gives you a nice material to work with.. check out the links below for what I mean.. peace

links:
http://www.iespana.es/alterton/Canale/main.htm

http://www.iespana.es/sculptorscorner/tutorials.htm

http://pub76.ezboard.com/fplbbmemberssitefrm17

[usagi yojimbo]

im pretty sure i remember reading that they used super sculpey at ILM

[epiphany]

i advice you to start on plasticine first to get the feel of sculpturing.

[Aly Fell]

People I used to work with used plasticine on a wire frame, and this was for the basic sculpt. It was then placed in a latex mould which was in turn used to mould the finished resin sculpt. The process meant the loss of the original plasticine sculpt when removing it from the latex mould, but also meant as many resin maquettes as needed could be produced, until the mould degraded. They used a product called 'Newplast', in neutral beige.

Plasticine is great, as it doesn't set, and you can come back to it whenever you like, you can smooth it with 'clean' fingers and 'Brylcream' which'll add a nice finish. I also think you can buy a hardener to paint on it if you wish. Don't underestimate the power of plasticine! :)

[uno]

Not like i got stock in it or something but from what i have learned (taking a water-based sculpting class and playing around with sculpey on my own), Super sculpey is very versatile. When it comes to more oil-based clays, which i believe plasticene and variants of it are, these require a long and potentially expensive process to get a hardened finished sculpt. The beauty of Sculpey is you toss it in YOUR oven when you are done sculpting and bake and you are ready to paint!! I have done two water-based clay sculpts (i am obviously a master!) and you need to have a kiln to fire the piece. I dont have a kiln so i rely on my instructor to fire those bad boys. I say start with Sculpey it stays pliable in the open air and is kinda cheap i guess (50lbs of terracotta - 17 dollars, 1 lb of super sculpey - 8 dollars!!!!).

Have fun!!