Description

Dragon Heart — is a sculpture of the American artist Michael Parkes and consists of a limited edition of 95 pieces. This Dragon Heart sculpture is available in Michael Parkes custom patina “Green” and “Red” finish and is part of “the Dragon Series”.

The bronze sculptures of Michael Parkes are born in Florence where he collaborates with none other than Piero Bertelli who is one of the best professionals in this field in Italy. Michael Parkes uses the Lost Wax technique for creating models that are later cast in bronze. Instead of soft wax he uses hard wax so he can express the finest details. Which is visible in the wings of his angel sculptures for instance.

His process always starts with sketching after which the model is made by hand. If the model is ready he creates a counter- mold which serves as the basis for the eventual bronze casting. The final bronze statue is refined and polished and fitted with various patinas which give it its color.

Michael Parkes bronze sculptures are available in classic dark brown color called ” Patino Classico or Florentine Patina” or in the more colorful variant “Custom Patina”. With the more colorful patinas Parkes wants to show techniques that were used a lot in history but are not regularly seen anymore because they require tremendous skill and are very time consuming.

Michael Parkes says about Dragon Heart: “Sometimes things just happen in a strange way. Firstly, many people asked if the little dragon from ‘Ex Libris’could be cast separately as a small sculpture. He became ‘Rex Libris’. Secondly, someone challenged me to make a series of small dragons that were completely unique but could be shown together as a group. And I love a challenge. I realized that the designs had already been created. For years, during book signings, I would make little fantasy dragon drawings for the children who wanted their books signed. These sculptures are a reflection of those children’s’ drawings. Each dragon represents a gift.”

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