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Olot Saints Museum

Hollowing out and retouching. Basement floor

Craftsmen worked to hollow out the sculpture.

Craftsmen worked to hollow out the sculpture.

This is where the mass production process starts for the model chosen in the previous room. First the model is placed in the corresponding mother mould. The mother mould is used to make the mould; every figurine has its own mother mould and they are stored in another warehouse.

Clay is used to attach the model to the mother mould. Gelatine is used to create the mould, which is simply the negative of the model. This thick liquid solidifies when it cools, and it is then attached to the mother mould. Two moulds are made:  one for the face, and another for the back of the figure.

Once the moulds are made, they are coated with plaster so that it covers every corner, then sackcloth is added with more plaster added to it. The sackcloth is placed over the surface of the mould so that, once the mixture is dry, it will be stronger. When the process has been finished with both parts of the figure, it is left to dry before being removed from the mould.

If you keep following the circuit you will arrive at the retouching area, where the piece is left in the perfect conditions to be painted and decorated.

The rough edges and imperfections from the hollowing out process must be removed, and any protruding parts that were moulded separately must now be added. This is also where the eyes are added, one of the most difficult and delicate parts of the process.

OBJECTS

<p>Creating the mould. Photo by Anna Pons. Olot Saints Museum.</p>

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Creating the mould
Creating the mould
<p>Glass eyes for the figures. Photo by Anna Pons. Olot Saints Museum.</p>

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Glass eyes
Glass eyes
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