Originals

Bill's originals are carved in wood. For his more detailed sculptures he generally uses lime wood. Lime is hard enough to take detail well, and doesn't have too obvious a grain. This means that fine details such as feathers are not overshadowed by the figuring of the wood.

For some of his more simple, stylised designs he can use more interesting woods, for example the swiming otter, right, is carved in camphor laurel, which has a very decorative grain. This simple design shows off the grain to best effect.

Laminated originals.

Bill also carves in laminated hardwoods. He usually uses birchwood, which he cuts into rough shapes (to a template he has previously designed) and these shapes are then glued together in layers. This method has several advantages. It means sculptures of any size can be carved from wood (they are not limited by the size of wood available from trees), it also gives the most beautiful grained effect, which when they are sanded to a fine finsh, oiled and waxed, give a lustrous sheen. By glueing many layers toether the carving has greater stability, so it doesn't split in an environment of varying humidity and temperature and can even be used outside. This method is used to best effect on simple shapes (such as the diving otter shown right).

Bronzes

Bronzes (which are produced at a foundry) are made in the lost wax method.

First a wax cast is taken from the mould (made from the original). Wax rods (sprues) and a funnel- like cup are fitted onto the wax cast which will eventually take the poured bronze and allow for release of captured gasses. The sprue system and wax positive are then coated with a ceramic liquid.

The piece, now coated in a ceramic shell, is fired in a kiln. This bakes the shell and melts the wax, which runs out of the mould, leaving a cavity in its place. (Thus the term, "LOST WAX.") The ceramic shell is removed from the kiln and molten bronze is poured into the mould. This is left to cool and the ceramic shell is cut away. The cooled bronze is a replica of the wax cast, including the sprues and funnel. These are cut away by an Artisan. Then by grinding, chasing, sanding and polishing, all areas are blended back to make the bronze look exactly like the artist's original sculpture. The bronze is now treated with chemicals and heat to give it the chosen patination. The patina is sealed under a wax coating and becomes a permanent part of the sculpture.

Bronze Resin

Bronze resins are made on site at Bills workshop. He makes the moulds, and produces the bronze resins himself. This means he can control the quality of the final object. They look almost identical to bronzes, but are made of polyester resin, with bronze powder and colour added to the mix. They are sometimes called cold cast bronzes.

A silicon mould is taken from the orginal sculpture, which is coated with a case, usually of fibreglass, for strength. Mould making is an art in its own right, and takes many years to of practice to perfect. For some of the more complicated sculptures, it can take days to make a mould.

A resin/bronze mix is poured into the mould and left for 24 hours to cure. The resin casts are then pulled from the mould. The cast is then fettled (cleaned and any air-release holes or seams made good) wire-wooled, to expose the bronze, and waxed. The casts are numbered, as part of a limited edition.