Precious metal

Limited edition artwork celebrates the Audi S8.

Created to coincide with the Australian launch of the awesome new Audi S8, Audi Australia commissioned an automotive artwork with a difference. Stunning in their execution, the limited edition bronze sculptures reproduce the S8 in minute detail and will be presented to Audi S8 customers as a commemorative gift.

10 May, 2014

Automotive art with a difference

The new Audi S8 may be the very embodiment of Audi’s state-of-the art automotive technology, but the limited edition bronze sculptures that will be presented to owners as a timeless accompaniment, were created using many traditional techniques that date back centuries.

Crafted by hand to faithfully reproduce the minutest detail of their real life inspiration, the sculptures are cast in bronze, heated to a searing 1,250 degrees celsius to capture the very essence of the S8 for eternity.

Audi commissioned celebrated Australian artist Clive Calder to create the sculptures. Calder’s work has seen him build an enviable reputation in the art world and his work as director of Australian Bronze, nestled in an artistic community on the Manly headland in Sydney’s north, has produced outstanding pieces for some of the country’s finest sculptors, as well as restorative work and numerous commissions for public spaces.

For this specialist project, a CAD (computer aided design) master of the car was used to establish parameters and produce a 3D print. This was then refined by hand to arrive at a physical master that would serve as the basis for the 60 cast sculptures.

Producing a viable mould, particularly one that would reproduce the fine detail of the car was a painstaking process, employing not only materials as diverse as silicon, wax and ceramics, but some techniques originally used by the ancient Egyptians.

First though, a master is produced in plastic, then a mould of it in silicon. A wax reproduction from the silicon mould, carefully refined by hand and stamped with the limited number for authenticity, then ceramic dipping to encase the faithful wax reproduction.

This forms the final mould to receive the molten bronze, the wax first melted from inside the ceramic to leave the finished shape inside the ceramic casing.

Crafting the S8

A long, involved process carried out by skilled artisans ensures a seamless result. It is also a labour-intensive process, the ultimate bronze pour requiring two men just to carry the glowing crucible full of molten bronze, while a third gently wipes away the quickly-cooling ‘skin’ on the molten bronze as it goes into the moulds, and a fourth tends to the moulds themselves. Calder oversees the pour (done in two separate installments), calmly dispensing instructions to his artisans as they manhandle the hot, unwieldy crucible that holds the molten bronze, temporarily the colour and consistency of orange cordial, yet requiring layers of protective clothing for those at work, lest a single drop of the innocent-looking liquid get near bare skin.

Conducted with well practiced precision, the actual pour is swift and efficient, the filled moulds cooling relatively quickly from the extraordinary temperature of the molten bronze. The results of this crucial step, revealed after only half an hour when the ceramic mould is broken away to show the distinctive – albeit miniature – front grille of an S8.

But this is by no means the end of the process.Finishing of each sculpture is by hand, removing the bases (that exist purely for the pour) and then finishing each sculpture to a smooth, highly polished piece ready to be mounted, complete with its limited edition plaque and presented to the S8 owner along with a certificate of authenticity.

“We wanted something extremely special for our new S8 customers, and we believe it’s a very fitting representation of our most powerful S model to-date, says Andrew Doyle, Managing Director of Audi Australia. It’s a celebration of the vehicle’s launch in Australia and and we’re delighted to present the S8 sculpture to our customers in recognition of their purchase.”

Timeless and unique, the sculptures perfectly represent the craftsmanship that has gone into each S8 – and capture a modern automotive masterpiece in an ancient medium.

Precious metal

Limited edition artwork celebrates the Audi S8.

Automotive art with a difference

Crafting the S8

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