Artistic Creations
Fonderia Nolana combines the mastery of the craft with technological innovation throughout the creative process.
Fonderia Nolana follows the artists in every step of the creative process of the work of art, dealing with all the necessary activities to support their inspiration, from the first studies of the project, to the realisation of the scale model, the structural engineering, the choice of materials and coating, up to the installation of the work.
The striving for excellence push our specialists to study and develop each time the most appropriate production practices for the specific need of the artist, whatever the technical features of the work of art.
Artistic creations and new technologies.
Fonderia Nolana has always been in tune with innovations in the artistic field, successfully integrating the mastery of the craft with technological vanguard and combining art with modern techniques. After having collaborated with many specialised companies as for techniques of rapid prototyping, our specialists are able to provide complete support for realising scale models by means of the acquisition of data with the latest laser scan systems and ad hoc choices of the most appropriate prototyping technique, such as 3D printers or multi-axis robot systems.
3D Art Studio is the department of Fonderia Nolana which deals with 3D scanning of objects and with the graphic elaboration of digital models thanks to technologically avant-garde systems.
3D Art Studio is the section of Fonderia Nolana dedicated to the 3D scanning of small and medium sized objects by means of the latest laser scans.
3D Art Studio is a technique mostly used for the documentarian study of sculpture and in the field of restoration. It is an avant-garde technology which, through an optical scanning of the work of art, allows the realisation of a digital model which perfectly describe the surface of the object analysed. This is the starting point for the creation of the model of the sculpture in plastic, which will be used in the foundry with the lost-wax casting techniques, giving life to the new statue in bronze.
The process of creation of the 3D digital model (with the use of laser scanners or structured-light optical systems) allows to create immediately a range map and to collect all the data about the sculpture in a unique virtual model. Digital scans fall within the scope of non-contact Reverse Engineering (RE) systems and allow to scan the surface of every physical object in order to virtually reconstruct with maximum precision a copy of the object. The phase of data processing enriches the 3D scan to have not only a detailed analysis of the model just acquired, but also the possibility to model the digital object by means of 3D modelling software programs.
Fonderia Nolana is specialised in the realisation of sculptures in metal thanks to the technique of lost-wax casting. Artistic fusion is a very ancient technique, used for centuries to realise statues with complex forms and using different materials (bronze, brass, and aluminium).
The origins of the lost-wax casting technique have long-standing roots within ancient history. This procedure, used to create metal small or large-sized objects, was used to create works with complex forms already in the Bronze Age of Ancient Egypt, in Mesopotamia and in China during the Han Dynasty. In Europe, one of the most famous testimonies of the use of this technique are the Riace Bronzes, dating back to the V century BC and found in the sea exceptionally intact only in 1907.
After the classical period, Medieval art, with the exception of Byzantine world, puts lost-wax casting aside. Only in the Renaissance, with the intention of repossessing the heritage of the classical world, art will recover the ancient technique of fusion in bronze.
The fusion of large statues in bronze.
The first large-sized statue melted with the technique of lost-wax casting is the “St. John the Baptist” by Lorenzo Ghiberti (1412-1416).
A written testimony of the use of this procedure, instead, dates back to the XVI century, when the sculptor Benvenuto Cellini describes, in his “Treatise on Sculpture”, the technique used to realise his Perseus, masterpiece of Italian Renaissance art. For this beautiful bronze statue weighting about 3 tons and a half, Cellini uses the procedure of lost-wax casting indeed.
Fonderia Nolana is specialised in the realisation of sculptures in metal with the technique of lost-wax casting. The company operates in an avant-garde industrial facility with a workspace of over 2000sqm, allowing the management of complex art projects and the realisation of works of all sizes, also using different materials. Our workshops are equipped not only for the fusion of works in copper alloys, like bronze, brass, and white bronze, but also for all kinds of fusions in aluminium.
Fonderia Nolana has consolidated over time a detailed knowledge of the several synthetic materials available on the market and of their technical specifications. This allows us to adopt production techniques which are specific for the characteristics of the work.
Synthetic materials, as epoxy acrylic resins and polyurethane resins, are employed in art both for artistic experimentation needs and for the ductility of application of these materials. Fonderia Nolana has consolidated over time a detailed knowledge of the several synthetic materials available on the market and of their technical specifications. This allows us to adopt production techniques which are specific for the characteristics of the work.
Epoxy acrylic resins and polyurethane resins for art.
Epoxy acrylic resins and polyurethane resins are synthetic polymers which find wide application in art. These resins allow to obtain new shapes and effects which are hard to achieve with metals. This is why they are a common choice for many artists and designers who are interested in creating works of art and/or realising serial products.
Fonderia Nolana has acquired a wide experience in melting procedure used in workshops to realise micro-sculptures, requiring maximum precision. It can be used with different materials (bronze, aluminium, silver, and white bronze).
Artistic microfusion is a melting procedure known since 4000 BC, when it was already used to create objects in bronze of small size, like jewels and medals.
The procedure of microfusion has been perfected over the centuries, up to the very high technological level we have today. It thus represents one of the most common methods in goldsmithing and jewellery-making production, thanks to the possibility to realise small objects in bronze with the highest quality levels.
The fusion of objects in bronze.
Fonderia Nolana has gained a wide experience in the application of this melting procedure, used in workshops to realise micro-sculptures requiring a level of precision in detail which is not achievable with the technique of lost-wax casting. Microfusion can be used to create objects in bronze, aluminium, silver, and white bronze.
Fonderia Nolana is specialised in the scaling up of sculptures. Starting from the sketch, our expert craftsmen are able to reproduce in macro dimensions bronze statues represented through two main modalities: a traditional one and a digital one.
Fonderia Nolana offers targeted services for scaling up of sculptures. Starting from the sketch, our expert craftsmen are able to reproduce in macro dimensions bronze statues. Fonderia Nolana realises the scaling up of sculptures for the artists with whom it collaborates through two main modalities: a traditional one and a digital one. The first replication technique provides for the realisation of scale models in wax with an enlargement system with main points taken as reference (usually the most protruding ones) for the calculation of all the remaining points. Then it is possible to realise an enlarged copy.
Sculptures scaling up with 3D scan.
A scaling up of a sculpture can be achieved not only with a model in wax obtained with the points technique, but also using a digital model realised with a 3D scan of the sketch. The elaboration of a point cloud then allows to go on with the realisation of a model in polystyrene or foam material using a 5 axis CNC milling machine. CNC systems ensure extreme precision in transferring the surface from the digital model, without missing details of the work. Moreover, they allow to reproduce in scale complex figures without limitation as to size.
Fonderia Nolana is proud of its consolidated experience in conservation and restoration of bronze, providing high-quality services for every requirement. Our experts work with a scientific and rational approach, with full respect of the damaged patina.
Fonderia Nolana is specialised in the art of restoration of bronze and other metals. We are able to identify, thanks to our decades of experience and by means of innovative techniques of digital inspection, the most appropriate intervention to faithfully restore the work of art to its original state, in compliance with the artist’s intentions. The main objective for our bronze restorers is the valorisation of the original product, through a delicate and attentive intervention which fully respect the historicity of the object and the intrinsic imperfections. This allows to underline both the traditional volume of bronze and the typical surface appearance marked by time. With over 20 years of activity in the conservation and restoration of sculptural works in bronze, Fonderia Nolana has gained a considerable experience to provide a tailored service for every requirement and to adapt attentive and complex solutions to the object, whatever its size.
Conservative restoration of bronze.
The art of restoration of bronze presents two main problems (especially in case of artefacts exposed outdoor). These problems are related to the surface of the work of art, called patina, which has a protective function, but is also considered a limiting layer of the artefact itself, testifying the passing of time and the degradation process.
Fonderia Nolana adopts a scientific and rational approach, with full respect of the patina which may be damaged by the formation of corrosion, encrustation, or stratification on the surface. The method used for restoration intervention on the artefacts develops in three steps:
1. Diagnosis of the bronze sculpture: identification of the alloy, of the different expositions of the surfaces, of the previous interventions, like cleaning, repatination, and protection, and of the status of conservation;
2. Identification of the most appropriate intervention procedure for the conservative restoration of bronze;
3. Recovery intervention on the bronze statue of the original chromatic connotation and creation of a series of layers ‘barrier effect’, to protect it from the action of environmental agents.