Essential Guide to Mold Making & Slip Casting

by Andrew Martin

Hardcover: 159 pages
Publisher: Lark Books (2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1-60059-077-2
ISBN-13: 978-1-60059-077-1
Dimensions: 10.25" x 8.8" x 0.75"
Shipping Weight: 1.88 lbs.

Mold-making is an important skill to learn because it will enable you to produce identical multiples of any object, such as dinnerware. Plaster molds let you create one-of-a-kind forms that can't be achieved by any other process.

Now this definitive guide to the craft, by widely respected ceramist and instructor Andrew Martin, has been newly revised. No other book on the subject describes and shows the key techniques in such detail.

Using Martin's simple yet unique template system, you'll be able to create a clay prototype of any object you want to produce. He then explains how to use that prototype to make one- or multiple-piece molds. Finally, you'll learn how to pour casting slip into your mold to shape the final object.

Begin by taking a look at the supplies and materials you'll need. Using the right tools can often sharpen your technical abilities instantly! The techniques that follow are illustrated in hundreds of color photographs and on different projects. These include footed bowls, pitchers, tiles, and found-object models. You'll also find a whole chapter of helpful troubleshooting tips, from repairing broken molds to remedying "plaster disasters."

In addition, profiles of masters in the field present real-world creative insight and reflections on the craft. Tom Spleth, for example had been making cups exclusively for more than 30 years and feels that this vessel "reveals the depth of its character and how it relates to its user's life only after a long association."

A gallery of contemporary examples from numerous artists round out this comprehensive guide that should be in every potter's library.