Sculpture Class Project Adds Variety to Geneseo Campus
Katie Kimball
On the average day, the SUNY Geneseo campus grounds don’t really have
anything too out of the ordinary to show off.
However, these days, if you’re anywhere near Brodie Hall, you may see
something a little different. Decorating a tree outside the building are several large
white capital letters hanging from the branches.
The letters are part of a campus art installation project done by a student in
ARTS 341: Sculpture III.
“The purpose of the project is to teach them the technical skill of mold-making
and also to allow them to make art with that skill,” said Professor Dan DeZarn.
The instructions for the project were to make an original and then make ten
copies using the two part rubber mold.
“It’s kind of a long process,” said the student behind the letters, Mike Chimenti.
“It’s very meticulous.”
The process of mold-making has numerous steps beginning with the creation of
a pattern and ends with peeling the mold from the piece of wood. Because the rubber is
made from specific compounds, they have to be in a certain ratio.
“The whole point of a rubber mold is to make multiple copies of the object,” said
Chimenti.
Therefore, if the artist doesn’t follow the directions exactly right during the
process, the mold is weaker and may not last long enough to make any copies.
