These are just a proof of concept. I wanted to include light in my resin heads to highlight la
These are just a proof of concept. I wanted to include light in my resin heads to highlight layers of mechanical parts. I was partly inspired by the movies Ex Machina and the classic Metropolis. Trying to find an LED small enough was the first problem - the second problem was making the batteries accessible so they could be changed. A few years ago I found LED earrings - the LED is on the pad and the batteries are in the back. They switch on by inserting the post into the back. These heads all have five layers of mechanical watch parts suspended in resin. It’s a very slow process with each layer needing to cure 24 hours before the next one can be poured. Some of the pieces have symmetrical parts - others are just random parts. The LEDs were set in the last pour leaving the post exposed so it could be inserted into the battery pack.There are other problems that I still have to address - the original head mold has been taken from a clay form. It has left a rough texture on the head that looks like it’s been scratched all over. I’m happy that the face comes out “frosted” but I have to polish the forehead so the mechanics can be seen. Resin is very soft - so the polishing has to be manual and it takes a long time. Even after hours of polishing it still looks like the piece has been scratched in close up photos. It’s barely noticeable in real life. I’ve come to the realisation that the texture must be sanded down before polishing. It may be a good idea to use a polished form to make my own mold. They don’t photograph well and the light complicates it. The magnification and refraction of the internal parts is frustrating. I spend a lot of time positioning each piece for symmetry but it looks like a mess in the photos. If I can’t take great photos - they can’t be sold online. But it’s early days in this artistic tangent. I initially bought the molds to make a head for a static miniature reproduction of a Hugo like automata. Unfortunately they are too big for that purpose. -- source link
#doll head#ledlights#glowing jewelry#watch parts#biomechanical#ex machina#metropolis#resinart#etsy shop#proofofconcept#testing#miniatures#steampunk#steampunk jewelry#steampunk art#steam punk#pendant#automata#handmade#purple