Sculptors primarily use four basic techniques. The processes are either subtractive (material is removed or carved out) or additive (material is added).
Carving: Carving involves cutting or chipping away a shape from a mass of stone, wood, or other hard material. Carving is a subtractive process whereby material is systematically eliminated from the outside in.
Casting: Sculptures that are cast are made from a material that is melted down—usually a metal—that is then poured into a mold. The mold is allowed to cool, thereby hardening the metal, usually bronze. Casting is an additive process.
Modeling: Modeled sculptures are created when a soft or malleable material (such as clay) is built up (sometimes over an armature) and shaped to create a form. Modeling is an additive process.
Assembling: Sculptors gather and join different materials to create an assembled sculpture. Assembling is an additive process. An example of assemblage is Martin Puryear's That Profile, above.
Martin Puryear most often crafts his sculptures from wood, but in the case of That Profile, he created a network of welded and sandblasted stainless steel tubes whose joints are bound together by strands of silver-patinated bronze. © Martin Puryear
