1855
Sculptor: Clark Mills (1810-83)
Bronze (bronze-patinated spelter)
14 feet
Three identical -- Replica of one in Washington, DC (1853) and later in Nashville, Tennessee (1880).
In 1848, Mills won a commission from the Jackson Monument Committee for a full-scale equestrian
figure of Andrew Jackson to be placed in Lafayette Square, opposite the White House. This figure was unveiled in 1853 to great
acclaim and made Mills the logical candidate for the proposed New Orleans monument of Jackson. In 1849, Mills had taken up
residence in Washington and became the first American sculptor of prominence not to be trained in Rome. He also was the first
sculptor of large-scale equestrian sculpture in this country. The success of the Washington monument of Jackson provided a
definite edge to Mills’ candidacy for a New Orleans sculpture. However, it is interesting to note that another competitor
for the New Orleans project was local sculptor and painter Achille Perelli (1822-1891), a near contemporary of Mills. The
Perelli design, although ultimately rejected, was the runner-up to the Mills composition. The monumental New Orleans equestrian
figure was so popular that Mills sold design rights to the eminent Philadelphia firm of Cornelius and Baker (in partnership,
1851-1861), which is most often remembered today for its superbly cast lamps, girandoles and chandeliers in bronze, brass
and spelter. The casting skills of the firm are evident in this rare bronze-patinated spelter reduction of the Jackson Square
monument, which is dated “Patented May 15, 1855”. Few of these reductions have survived.
January 8? On this day in 1815, Major General Andrew Jackson led a small, poorly equipped army to victory against 8,000
British troops at the Battle of New Orleans. Jackson became a hero (and later the seventh president of the United States).
Every January 8, during the 19th century, many people held parties and dances to celebrate the anniversary of the great victory.
How this works:
small amount of tin ore to the copper ore during smelting the resulting metal was harder and thus more useful than either
tin or copper alone. They had created the alloy bronze
Lost Wax Technique:
1. A figure is shaped out of wax
2. The wax figure is completley covered with plaster cast, with the exception of a hole or cavity which will allow
the wax to be removed later in the process.
3. The wax covered cast is heated and the wax is poured out. What remains is a hollow cast -- the interior is a
replica of the wax figure.
4. The plaster cast is filled with bronze.
5. The plaster cast is removed. What remains is a bronze replica of the wax figure/inside of the plaster cast.
Hands on:
Lesson 1 - Begin creating wax figures.
Lesson 2 - Contiue working on wax figures
Lesson 3 - "
Lesson 4 - Apply plaster
Lesson 5 - Remove wax
Lesson6 - Remove plater
Enrichment Links:
