Sculpture in the Style of Alberto Giacometti From Scrap Copper Wire

I have always admired the sculpture works of Alberto Giacometti. Unfortunately, only the super-rich can acquire an original, and I don't have the expertise to model and cast in bronze a close copy. But I do have lots of copper scrap pipe/ wire, so developed a method of using these materials with a "wrap and melt" technique that approximates his style and look. I have used this method to make sculptures from 6ft tall to small table top size. This example is about 60 inches tall and took about 1 week to complete.

Supplies

Material include Flexible soft copper pipe of diameters required for the basic sculpture (1/4 o.d.,3/8 o.d. and 1/2 i.d.), Bare copper wire (I use 14 Gauge from electrical scrap) and 10 Gauge for the fingers, some sheet copper, 24"x10"x3" wood plank for base, air dry clay, acrylic paints, pickling vinegar (10% acetic acid)

Tools required are a copper pipe cutter, various pliers, sheet metal cutters, oxy-acetylene torch, welding gloves, eye protection shade 5, fire proof work area (I use an broken old kiln shelf), a drill, a 3/8" bit, , a dunk tank (4" plastic pipe capped at one end) and a vice would be handy.

If you don't have access to a oxy torch, the brazing/melting can be omitted and simply wrap the copper wire and wrap and epoxy the joints. but the creating hands will be an issue.

Step 1: Planning and Cutting Rough Pipe Lengths

First, determine how big you want to go, any part over 36" will most like require internal steel support rods. Then I will create a basic sketch of the parts and cut lengths.

Step 2: The Body Blank

The first step in construction is take some 1/2" ID flexible copper 4" piece and 2-22" pieces and braze together in a triangular shape leaving the holes exposed and open. The arms and legs will slide into these opening. If you place the long part into a vice and insert a 3/8" drill bit you can easily bend the last 2" to an angle of about 10 degrees they should come together with openings facing straight downwards. Tightly wrap some wire around the joints and braze together. If you can't braze then wrap and epoxy the joints together. In the middle of the 4" piece (shoulders) drill a 3/8" opening and inert a 3" piece of 3/8" OD pipe for the neck. After the parts are solidly joined, squeeze the long pipes together about mid-chest changing the shape from a triangle to "Y" form. This will form the rough body shape.

Step 3: Arm Blanks

Insert a 12" piece of 1/4" OD into a 9" piece of 3/8" OD about a inch and braze joint. This will form the arm blank. You will need 2. Gently bend a shoulder in the 3/8 pipe leaving about an inch to insert into the body blank.

Step 4: Leg Blanks

Take a leg piece and put into the vice, leaving about 2" exposed. Using the 3/8" drill bit put a bend of about 30 degrees at one end. This will give the front striding leg. For the rear leg, repeat the process but only bend about 10 degrees. The small bent end should able to slide into the lower body blank.

Step 5: Make the Base

In a piece of wood (I used Cherry), drill 2 - 3/8" holes as shown about 2" deep. The rear leg should angled 10 degrees to the front and front hold angled 30 degrees to the rear.

Insert the leg blanks into each hole and then place the body blank on top, inserting a leg into each hip joint.

See how the form looks. It should stand on it's own and look something like a walking figure. If required the hip joints can be gently bent, body rotated and if necessary leg lengths can adjusted.

Put the arms into the sockets and see if they look the same length and hang naturally beside the body at about hip length.

Step 6: Making Hands and Feet

If you are brazing the parts with a torch, you might want to make realistic hands. I take heavy 10 gauge wire cut 4 fingers and thumb and then braze them in a rough hand shape. After each cools, I will use pliers/files to adjust the finger length and bend them to look natural, then braze them on to the end of each arm. If you just going to wrap the figure then create a small ball of wire wrapping and glue them into the end of each arm tube.

For feet I cut some 3/4" copper and flattened into some sheets about 3" long. I then cut out a "shoe upper" design and bent them into final shape around 3/8" drill bit.

Step 7: The First Wrap

This is important if you intend to use the torch to melt texture into the wire. If you are NOT using the torch then skip to the next step.

This is done on body blank, both arms and both legs.

Drill a small hole 1/16" on a leg of arm just bellow the point it fully seats into hip or shoulder joint. Then tightly wrap copper wire the entire length of the piece until you reach hand (arm) or the point it inserts into the base.

Wrap as tightly as possible. It should look like the example shown.

Step 8: The Texture Layer

Wrap wire around the parts, firmly and in a random fashion, (leaving air gaps, skipping areas, doubling back etc.) until you achieve the desired diameters or thicknesses. Its better to work the length of the piece in about 2-3" increments. The final look should appear like the example.

Step 9: Melting Texture

This part is optional but really helps in achieving the random over-worked textures that Giacometti was so well known for in his sculptures.

Taking the part in locking pliers, I start melting the random wrapped texture layer with a fine torch flame from one end. melting little "gobs" of copper and letting them flow into each other. If there is an area which melts through or needs more material, I have a roll of wire that I can handy that I can use as filler material. Be sure to wear the proper protective gloves and eyewear when using a torch, this is HOT and can damage unprotected eyes. After finishing the piece, I quench it with the garden hose. To remove the oxidation caused by the heat, I will "brighten up" the piece using a soft wire wheel.

The examples show, after melting and after polishing.

Step 10: Optional - Easy Patina for Copper

I happen to like the patina of aged copper, so prior to assembly I will put on a chemical patina to help it "age" faster. This process works well for indoor items but it only helps the process for garden art. There are many patina finished that are better but this is easy and achievable with grocery store items.

The process involves submerging the part in nothing more than pickling vinegar (10%) for a couple of hours.

I use a tube made from plastic drain pipe, submerge it for a couple of hours, then remove it and let it stand to dry. When you first remove it should be a dull reddish copper, but as the liquid evaporates the green colour will appear.

Step 11: Giving It a Head

For this sculpture I simply used air dry clay and molded a head form that I liked for the size of the body. After it dried I drilled a 3/8" hole and placed it on the copper neck post. I then painted it with cheap acrylic paints to match the patina colours on the body

If you have access to a 3D printer and like the head I made. Attached is a STL file of the head, that you scale to your needs.

Step 12: Final Assembly