French sculptor casts the Statue of Liberty

As a symbol of New York, the Statue of Liberty has always been loved by people all over the world. Over the past century, a large number of imitations of the Statue of Liberty have been continuously produced. Now people can finally buy replicas that have the closest blood relationship with the original goddess. According to the “New York Times” reported on June 7th, the oldest French art foundry Arqueire d'Uthul Foundry was based on the original author of the statue of the French sculptor Frederick Auguste Bartol. Di's original plaster model casts the “daughter sister” of the Statue of Liberty and surprises the loved ones of the goddess.

According to reports, the copy of the bronze statue was sold by Francois Duhamet, a French art dealer who specializes in works by artists such as Picasso and Dubuffet. Six years ago, Duhamel visited the Parisian arts and crafts museum, which mainly exhibited industrial inventions, along with the sons of the elementary school students. When he stopped to enjoy various vintage aircraft from time to time, he was suddenly attracted by an exhibit. In front of his eyes, a familiar statue of a woman is cold, high and holding a torch, wearing a crown. The next day, Duhamel visited the museum again and learned that the exhibit was the original plaster cast of the Statue of Liberty presented to the U.S. government in 1884 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the independence of the United States. It was about 3 meters from the base to the top of the torch. high. Bartoldi magnified the model by a factor of 16 and made a steel-copper statue of Liberty 46 meters high in New York Harbor. In 1907, three years after Barthord’s death, his widow donated the model to the museum.

When Duhamel first saw the model, the model was never copied. "It's incredible," Duhamel recalled. He proposed a deal to the museum to buy the right to cast 12 bronze statues using this model, which is the maximum allowed by French law. The museum can retain its first seat, and Duhamel will sell the rest to recoup the investment.

Prior to this, the museum had rejected numerous requests for lending of the statue, especially some requests from relevant U.S. agencies, because gypsum was fragile and not suitable for long-distance transportation. The museum had also considered casting a new model on its own and later discovered that it was not feasible. “We are a non-profit organization,” said Pierre Yaff Garnier, the director of the museum. “There is not enough money to complete this great project.”

Duhamel's casting plan was almost rejected by the museum at first, because experts worried that silicone molds would damage delicate plaster. The plan was suspended for a year or two until the French company "7Dworks" invented a new technology that allows the statue to be scanned and drawn directly to the hairline without contact, so that it can be cast almost exactly the same replica. In this way, the museum was able to safely rent the cast copper version to meet the needs of art institutions and the likes of the goddess. When Duhamel sells bronze statues, he will also allow buyers to sign an agreement to ensure respect for the meaning represented by the Statue of Liberty. The bronze statues sell for 1.1 million U.S. dollars.

At present, four replica bronze statues have been created in the casting workshop in the south of Paris. They were all cast using ancient dewaxing techniques. The owner of the plant, Hubert Lacroix, said that each bronze statue weighs about 453 kilograms and it takes 600 hours to complete. The first one took another year. This bronze statue was moved to the entrance of the Paris Museum of Arts and Crafts two months ago and it has attracted tourists. Many people hold one arm high and pose for a picture in front of it. Among them were Italian tourists and French couples. Everyone saw this actress holding the torch very excited. Recently, the US ambassador to France Charles H. Fokin held an inauguration ceremony for bronze statues. Verkin said before the ceremony that the statue will “highlight the friendship between France and the United States, and it has lighthouse-like symbolism for millions of immigrants and their descendants in the United States.”