Cire Perdue

p. 14 Cire Perdue – Steuben

In the early 1930’s after months of experimentation, Frederick Carder revived the lost wax process for casting glass. His limited production output consisted of satinized clear crystal figures, usually 41/2″ to 91/2″ in height. Birds, animals, fish plaques, portions of the human anatomy and portraits of famous people comprised his repertoire. The largest piece he ever cast was a Pyrex glass Indian head, 46″ high, with a nose 12″ thick.

His work in the ’30s is reminiscent of Lalique’s, combining shiny and frosted clear crystal surfaces. In the ’40s, his emphasis was upon action models of athletes and portraits of famous people and friends. In the ’50s up until 1959, Carder executed his cast and sculptured work in color. All of his output originated in his factory-studio on the 5th floor at the Corning Glass Works.

The complicated eight-step process was as follows: 1) A model in great detail was fabricated in clay, 2) A replica of the original was formed with plaster-of-Paris, 3) A mold in reverse was formed of hot glue and glycerin made from the plaster-of-paris form; in two or more sections this was then held in place by an external shell of plaster, 4) Two or three wax castings were made from the gelatin mold (set 30, 5) An investiture consisting of thick cream (plaster-of-Paris and powdered clay) was poured over the wax; it set in about 15 minutes, 6) This ceramic mold was dried for 24 hours, then placed in boiling water to melt the wax. Any residue was fired out after the ceramic mold had dried, 7) The mold was now ready for the gradual insertion of lumps and rods of glass. The kiln temperature was critical to melt the glass and force it to run into every fissure of the mold, 8) Finally, the glass and mold were cooled very gradually, using electric heating elements. Depending upon the casting’s size, this process took two or more days. After cooling, the mold was carefully broken to free the glass casting, hopefully still intact, a very detailed original of the clay model.

In the early 1930’s after months of experimentation, Frederick Carder revived the lost wax process for casting glass. His limited production output consisted of satinized clear crystal figures, usually 41/2″ to 91/2″ in height. Birds, animals, fish plaques, portions of the human anatomy and portraits of famous people comprised his repertoire. The largest piece he ever cast was a Pyrex glass Indian head, 46″ high, with a nose 12″ thick.

His work in the ’30s is reminiscent of Lalique’s, combining shiny and frosted clear crystal surfaces. In the ’40s, his emphasis was upon action models of athletes and portraits of famous people and friends. In the ’50s up until 1959, Carder executed his cast and sculptured work in color. All of his output originated in his factory-studio on the 5th floor at the Corning Glass Works.

The complicated eight-step process was as follows: 1) A model in great detail was fabricated in clay, 2) A replica of the original was formed with plaster-of-Paris, 3) A mold in reverse was formed of hot glue and glycerin made from the plaster-of-paris form; in two or more sections this was then held in place by an external shell of plaster, 4) Two or three wax castings were made from the gelatin mold (set 30, 5) An investiture consisting of thick cream (plaster-of-Paris and powdered clay) was poured over the wax; it set in about 15 minutes, 6) This ceramic mold was dried for 24 hours, then placed in boiling water to melt the wax. Any residue was fired out after the ceramic mold had dried, 7) The mold was now ready for the gradual insertion of lumps and rods of glass. The kiln temperature was critical to melt the glass and force it to run into every fissure of the mold, 8) Finally, the glass and mold were cooled very gradually, using electric heating elements. Depending upon the casting’s size, this process took two or more days. After cooling, the mold was carefully broken to free the glass casting, hopefully still intact, a very detailed original of the clay model.

Art Deco Female Head (Isobel Lee) c. 1939