Creating Water Effects With Resin

I'm in the process of designing a sculpture which will have either a water dragon or sea serpent as its subject. With the last serpent I created I used Apoxie Sculpt clay to model waves around the creature.

Another method of creating realistic looking water effects is to use clear resin. I first used resin on a project in the early 1990's. That sculpture depicted two men hauling a net full of mackerel into their dory. Unbeknownst to them a Mako shark had been zeroing in on that school of mackerel and breached right next to their boat.

The creation of that sculpture was detailed in an article I wrote about sculpting and mold making titled Mako Antics for issue 32 of Breakthrough Magazine Spring 1993 . The resin I used for that project is Polytranspar Artificial water distributed by Wildlife Artist Supply Company.

Unfortunately I don't have digital pictures to share of Mako Antics but here is a photo of a recent sculpture I did where I used similar techniques to create the resin water.

If you are familiar with the film The Old Man And The Sea you may remember this scene where Santiago is bringing in his catch lashed to his skiff.

This piece required sculpting clay waves around the skiff and Marlin. Making a rubber mold of the water. And casting tinted resin in the mold to get my resin waves.

Another product I find useful for creating water effects is Envirotex. If you've ever been in a pub and seen a coin embedded on the table top under a clear coat of material likely it was EnviroTex!

I prefer using it over resin to create still water. It doesn't give off the awful fumes that resin does. Another advantage over resin is the surface dries completely tack free.

In this sculpture of a Gorgosaurus coming upon a dead dinosaur in a burned out section of the forest I used EnviroTex to make the water in the shallow creek.

In the close up photo you can see the stones and moss that line the creek bed. After gluing everything in place I drizzled a thin layer of EnviroTex over it. When it cured I poured subsequent layers till I achieved the depth I wanted.

If you've ever wanted to add water effects to your work using resin I'd encourage you to go for it. Just be sure to follow proper safety precautions in using it. And expect to go through some trial and error experimentation before using it on anything important!

One tip I would pass along is to keep a work journal and detail everything. And I mean everything! Right down to the temperature and humidity on the day you make your resin pours. You'd be surprised how it can effect how the resin behaves.

And I can't stress enough to test the compatibility of everything that is going to come in contact with the resin. It can be nasty stuff and attack certain materials

I'd also advise you to keep a dated record of the age of your resin. It definitely has a short shelf life. For that reason I always make a point of mixing up a small test batch before adding it to my project. Trust me you don't want the hassle of trying to remove uncured resin from your project!

Sea Serpent WIP Update

I haven't had much chance to work on the sea serpent piece due to the rotten weather we've been having! I'm painting the serpent in acrylic washes and I need to protect the finish with clear lacquer before progressing to the next step.

We finally had a decent day here and I was able to get outside and spray the serpent so I could finish the painting. The serpent is now done, the fisherman and boat are 99% completed. All that remains to do is create the waves washing over the base.

On past projects I've sculpted the waves in clay, made a mold, and cast the waves in resin. It is a time consuming process but provides a dramatic effect! Here is a post with photos of my sculpture of The Old Man And The Sea for a look at resin water : http://blacknick-sculpture.blogspot.com/search?q=resin+water

On this piece I'm going to use Apoxie Sculpt two part clay to create the water. The first step is marking off the direction I want the waves to flow using a marker.

Next I begin using foil to form my waves. The core of foil will save on weight and material. This weekend I hope to have the foil waves set in place so I can begin my wave sculpting.

My Sculpture Featured on Etsy's Off the Beaten Path

It was a pleasant surprise to wake up to find my Sea Serpent sculpture had been chosen by the curator of Etsy Finds: Off the Beaten Path : Etsy Finds: Off the Beaten Path :: Etsy Blog .

I can't believe the number of people that have viewed it in a little over a day! Just goes to show you the power of the Internet.

I have another serpent in mind I'd like to create. This one will be "swimming" in resin water.

Creating resin water is a little more time consuming and the fumes are a bit much. For this reason I like to cast my resin pieces outdoors which means I'll have to wait for warmer weather to arrive.

Sea Serpent Sculpt Finished!

I finished the sea serpent sculpture I've been working on this Thursday and got it listed in my Etsy shop :http://www.etsy.com/listing/68901992/sea-serpent-and-doryman I thought I'd share some wip photos with you. First I finished sculpting the clay waves over the wood base.

Then I mixed together Liquitex Blue acrylic paint with transparent green polytranspar paint to make a thin wash.

I applied the wash over the clay waves in thin coats.

After several coats of the blue/green wash I dry brushed in some white caps.

When my painted sea dried I gave it several coats of water based clear varnish to seal the finish.

While the varnish was setting I mixed up a small batch of EnviroTex Clear resin.

I wanted to do a test mixture of the Envirotex, sand and broken bits of shell to be sure it cured properly. The next morning I saw it had set fine - clear and hard!

So I mixed up a second batch and poured it into the bottom of the listing boat letting it settle to the side. I've never seen the floor of a work boat yet that didn't have some sea water slogging back and forth. The EnviroTex captured this look perfectly!

Here are some photos of the finished piece. Click on them if you'd like a larger view:

If I've piqued your curiosity about sea serpents you may enjoy these links:

The UnMuseum - Sea Serpent of Gloucester

The Shadowlands Sea Serpent page

This book by J.P. O'Neill sounds right up my alley! Amazon.com: The Great New England Sea Serpent: An Account of Unknown Creatures Sighted by Many Respectable Persons Between 16...

Lobsterman Sculpture

During the winter months when I'm not fishing I often like to spend my time building wood boat kits. I've always had a soft spot for working boats like dredge boats and dories.

I suppose it was only natural that I eventually combine my love of the sea with my passion for sculpting. One of my recent sculptures in this theme is the Lobsterman. This piece depicts a lobsterman rowing his skiff called a Peapod through calm waters as he is about to drop his last trap.

The lobsterman figure is sculpted of Apoxie and polymer clays. The Peapod was hand built of wooden strips bent and fastened to the ribs much like a real Dory is constructed.

The trap was fun to make. It is highly detailed and features a piece of fish bait, a brick for weighting down the trap and a marker buoy. The finishing touch was adding a bit of broken shell and seaweed covered by some clear resin to give the effect of seawater sloshing in the bottom of the skiff.

The sculpture is mounted on a stained and varnished wood plaque over which Apoxie clay was sculpted to simulate water lapping at the hull. The sculpture measures 18" L X 9" W X 6 1/2" H and is finished in acrylic paints.