1 Intro
2Starting out
3 You and me together again at last
4Product Design
5Rubber mold
6 Be a Sculptor
7 Marbleizing
8 Getting Ahead
9Paint techniques
10 Foam carving

               Dan's Wild, Weird and Wonderful  World                         pg3 

We could make beautiful music together! 

Do you have an idea? Something the world could use?

What a coincidence! I make things. You need something made.

  Is this a great world or what!

  Y ou've had that fantastic idea rattling around in that bony projection you call your head for some time now. So how about doing something about it! Let's see if I can help you get this thing going. I assume you have thought  it through thoroughly. That would be a good start. Can it be made? What are your options as to materials and manufacturing processes?  If all these questions are making your head spin call or e-mail me. We can discuss your options. Dan's Phone 610 -391 -9277

  Here are some pictures of previous jobs help to stimulate your creative processes.

At the left I am working on a clay sculpture of a humpback whale. The company for which I designed the whale produced them in porcelain and sold them in gift shops. The detail is exacting right down to the barnacles on the flippers. It was a totally gratifying experience doing the whale sculpture. I immersed myself in books and videos on whales and became thoroughly absorbed in the subject.

  I started designing ceramic and porcelain pieces way back in the early days of my career. I branched out from there into concrete statuary design, metal sculpture, plaster casting, foam carving and fiberglass sculpture.

Together we could be a dangerous team

With your ideas and my capabilities just imagine what we could do together. Look out world here we come. Why am I so confident? I've been doing this so long there isn't much that hasn't come my way.

  In the last 35 years I have taken over one thousand original ideas and developed them into real three dimensional products that people can purchase off store shelves. Some were truly bizarre others were mundane. I enjoy the diversity of ideas that come my way.  I have helped hundreds if not thousands of others learn the trade through the courses on the Plaster Master website. 

 The picture to the right is a lamp base that I made for a company about  30 years ago. It is a ceramic piece. In mold making terms the piece is said to have a lot of action. This means that there is a lot of in and out movement in the piece and the pose is complicated to mold.  The bobcat, pheasant and sign are stick ons or add ons. This means that they are cast separately and stuck on later. This piece is one of the more difficult ones to come along. For this type of commercial work you need more than artistic talent.  You need almost a mechanical sense to be able to visualize how each  piece will be molded individually and then how each one will fit together to make the finished sculpture appear natural.
   Being able to see clearly the design and production process from start to finish is crucial to anyone entering into this business.  I have had to solve the design and production challenges for more kinds of products than I have space to describe. Each process has its own peculiar issues.  They are best discussed on an individual level  with the client rather than going through them here.
   These are some of the different kinds of projects I get into: molds and models for ceramic figurines, Christmas ornaments, concrete lawn ornaments, dishes, bowls, mugs, cups, pitchers, garden figures, fountains, toys, mythical creatures, animals, cartoon figures, men, women, children, fruit, vegetables, rocks, trees, pets, flower pots, industrial molds and models, medical models, lamp bases, giftware and architectural ornaments.

 So what kinds of sculpture or models will I be able to help you with. Basically if  your product is one which will need to be poured or cast out of some type of material like ceramic or metal or concrete then I can probably help you. If it is something that can be made in a mold then I may be able to help you. In addition to assisting in the design of the piece and making molds I may be able to pour a short run of the item to get you started. This means 500 or so of your item.

   I have done work for many small companies and individuals.  I have also designed molds and models for quite a number of large companies.  These notable companies have used my services: Johnson and Johnson, the Stanley Co., Trumps Castle and Casino, the Kentucky Lottery, the Franklin Mint,  Yogi Bear Camp Grounds, Good House Keeping, Goebels Porcelain and now you.

This sculpture was done for Trump's Castle in Atlantic City.  It depicts three satyrs drinking from rams horns. Satyrs are just partying kind of guys. Running around naked drinking wine all day is their main purpose in life. ( Hmm?  Why was I the first one to come to mind for this job?) 

This sculpture is one of a pair installed at the casino. An original was sculpted in clay. Then molds were made and fiberglass statues were fabricated from the  molds. Multiple figures combined into one piece of sculpture are infinitely more challenging than a single figure. 

E -mail Dan about your project

A little background info on Dan, or: 

How did I come to this ignominious end ?

   What the heck is ignominious anyway? Is that something like an ignoramus? That figures! It's the story of my life. Well lets look into this life long career choice. Hmm, let's see.  How did I get started as a sculptor?  To me the direction was always  clear.  I did not have to wander the desert or spend years fasting on a mountain top trying to find myself.  I didn't even search out the job market or look in the newspaper for upcoming hot fields of employment.  Forces beyond my understanding seem to have come together long before I was born to map out the path I would follow.  I was born wanting to be an artist.  I never wanted anything else nor have I regretted my choice.

Creating artwork gives me a  sense of fulfillment that I've never experienced in any other type of work. When you are in creative mode your body and mind unite to unleash  that inner force.  The creativity comes from another place deep within your soul. It is an exhilarating experience that no other job can duplicate.  
  From the earliest time I can remember, drawing and creating things with clay made me happy.  I was 2 years old when my mother taught me how to make little animal figures with clay from our back yard. Many sculptures and all these years later I'm still at it and loving it.
  When I reached my late teens I studied sculpture at Mountain Top Studios with Waylande Gregory, noted sculptor of the 1934 World's Fair.  There my natural talents were brought into focus. After Waylande Gregory's tutelage I moved on to  study anatomy, drawing, painting and sculpture at the Art Students League of New York for about three years.  The rest I picked up on my own in the real world of hard knocks.  I decided early on to  work as a self employed artist. My natural inclination is to stay free and not be owned by anyone.  So far so good.

  Being free is just the code word for having to scramble to find enough work to stay alive. When I was just a young pup starting out I knocked on doors of likely manufacturers who could use a sculptor. Sometimes I hit pay dirt sometimes I struck out but I learned to stay alive by my wits and talent. Companies that gave me work in the early years would have me doing everything from drawing pictures for their catalogs to pouring concrete statuary. Time marched on and eventually I weeded the list down to the few better clients who could supply me with a meager living.

 I ended up working in the ceramic hobby mold industry for about 30 years. As I learned the skills and ways of a plaster worker life gradually improved. I started various plaster statuary and mold businesses along the way and have ended up as you see me now.

No this is not a picture of me stumbling home after a night of revelry. It is a job I did for Holland Mold Co. in Trenton N.J.
  The scarecrow and cornstalks in the picture are made of ceramic.  The hay bale is real. I sculpted the scarecrow, cornstalks and pumpkins in plastilina clay. Then plaster molds were made and ceramic slip cast in them.  When the slip pieces are removed from the mold  they are called greenware. The greenware is then fired and decorated. (Professional ceramic painters are called decorators) They  produce the finished products such as the one above. Sales of Halloween items are starting to rival those of Christmas. It's a good area to look into for seasonal sales.
   
  The ceramics industry is a fast paced field and new designs are needed constantly. It has been good training  to learn to keep ahead of the trends and produce a supply of fresh ideas for each year's new line of products.  The same thing is true for concrete lawn ornaments. I have designed a considerable number of concrete lawn and garden statues.  In the field of  architectural ornament and industrial models the race to come out with new ideas every year is not as intense, but is still a vital part of their industry's life blood. I have designed quite a few molds and models for those industries. Each field has its own special needs. It's up to the sculptor to adapt to the unique quirks each business. Other interesting work has come my way in the lamp industry, toy business and every day household products. Each industry has its own way of doing things and  being flexible is the key to working with them.

Confidentiality Issues

Much of the work I do has to be kept confidential. (probably 50% or better is confidential)  Large corporations frown upon outside contractors telling the world about what they are up to.  All work is kept strictly confidential whether it is for an individual or a major firm until the client gives permission to show what I have done.  I could not have lasted this long as a designer of new products if I went around revealing  what this or that company is doing.  Your project also will be handled in the strictest of confidence.
  
By now you should have a fairly well defined idea of what I can do for you.  If you are in doubt as to whether I can help you with your project call or e- mail me. As momma used to say" It doesn't hurt to ask."
  So now that you know what I can do for you, where do you start? Most people want to know what are the steps to take to even begin having something made. I have outlined the process in the pages to follow.

   E- mail Dan                                                                                                    Next page 

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  Dan Kijak   4308 Shankweiler Rd. Orefield PA 18069

610-391-9277