Don't ask me how Allen and Patty Eckman did it, but they have a special process that lets you create detailed sculptures out of cast paper:
Cast paper sculpture has been around since the 1950's but should not be confused with papier-mache'. The two mediums are completely different. The artists first mix an acid free paper pulp in the studio hydro-pulper
from two raw stocks, cotton and abica. Then the pulp is cast into molds which were made from original clay sculptures. The paper is then pressed under vacuum pressure or by hand in the mold where most of the water is extracted at the same time. The drying process is completed by evaporation while the paper is still in the mold. After the dry and hard casts are removed from the molds the exclusive process of chasing, cast additions, cast alterations, sculpting in paper and detailing begins. It takes a great amount of time and experience to create each piece. Some works are so painstakingly detailed they can take many months to complete.
Suffice it to say, their artwork are fantastic: Link - via CrookedBrains
ARE YOU ABLE TO USE THE MOLDS MORE THAT ONCE? THE MOLDS MUST BE LOVELY SCULPTURES IN THEMSELVES.
THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR WORK ON LINE.
B. GIES