Figures modeled or molded in beeswax, either as finished pieces or for use as forms for casting metal (see lost-wax casting) or creating preliminary models. At ordinary temperatures, beeswax can be cut and molded easily, it melts at a low temperature, it mixes with any colouring matter and takes surface tints well, and its texture can be modified by a variety of additives. The ancient Egyptians used wax figures of deities in their funeral rites, and the Romans used wax images as presents in the Saturnalia. Michelangelo used wax models in making preliminary sketches for his statues. Wax medallion portraits, popular in the 16th century, enjoyed renewed popularity in the 18th century. John Flaxman made many wax portraits and relief figures which Josiah Wedgwood translated into pottery. Exhibitions of wax figures are still popular, the most famous being those of Madame Tussaud's museums in London and other international cities.
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Three-dimensional art produced especially by forming hard or plastic materials into three-dimensional objects, usually by carving or modeling. The designs may be produced in freestanding objects (i.e., in the round), in relief, or in environments, and a variety of media may be used, including clay, wax, stone, metal, fabric, wood, plaster, rubber, and found objects. Materials may be carved, modeled, molded, cast, wrought, welded, sewn, or assembled and combined. Various forms of sculpture have been found in virtually every culture throughout history. Until the 20th century, sculpture was considered a representational art, but, beginning in the early 1900, nonrepresentational works were increasingly produced. The scope of the term became much wider in the second half of the 20th century. Present-day sculptors use any materials and methods of manufacture that will serve their purposes, and so the art of sculpture can no longer be identified with any special materials or techniques. Seealso environmental sculpture; kinetic sculpture.
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Sculpture in which movement (as of a motor-driven part or a changing electronic image) is a basic element. Actual movement became an important aspect of sculpture in the 20th century. Pioneers such as Naum Gabo, Marcel Duchamp, László Moholy-Nagy, and Alexander Calder produced movement by such means as water, mechanical devices, and air currents (as in Calder's mobiles). Neo-Dadaist works such as Jean Tinguely's self-destructing Homage to New York (1960) embody the concept of a sculpture that functions as both an object and an event—a “happening.”
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Art form, developed in the 20th century, that involves or encompasses the spectator. The environmental sculptor can use any medium, from mud and stone to light and sound. Indoor environmental works often incorporate sculptural figures in detailed settings in gallery or museum spaces. Outdoor works in natural or urban settings include “earthworks” (large-scale alterations of the Earth's surface effected by earth-moving equipment) such as Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty (1970), a rock-and-dirt spiral 1,500 feet long in the Great Salt Lake. The wrapped buildings of Christo are notable urban environmental works.
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