Frequently Asked Questions

Excellent question and probably the most asked. Here’s my complete process:

Once I decide on a new character to sculpt, I begin the design process with a sculpting wax called Castilene. This allows me to do multiple iterations until I’m satisfied with a final look. This wax design and drafting phase is the longest and most time-consuming phase of my creation process, taking upwards of 3-4 weeks. I have very high standards for my work so I do not proceed to the next phase until I believe the character has been perfectly captured. I often end up with many scrapped sculpts that never see the light of day.

After I’m completely satisfied with the wax draft, it is then cast into a premium carving stone called Winterstone. Details are lost in the stone transfer process so I use carving tools, sandpaper, and more Winterstone to bring it to the high level of finish and detail that you see in the final pieces.

If I was to sell only one of these sculptures, I would charge upwards of $1200+ for my time and expertise. This is indeed the price I charge for custom one-of-a-kind commissions. For re-sculpts of the completed characters on my website, I can jump directly to working with a rough stone cast and skip the wax design & drafting phase. This saves me weeks of time while still allowing me to achieve an exceptional-quality finished stone piece. Thus, I am able to charge a very reasonable price by essentially “crowd-sourcing” the expensive time cost of my design phase.

Even as an artist, I am a huge collector myself but have always found collectible statues to be either: awesome but prohibitively expensive, cheap but poorly made, or plain non-existent. Tired of these issues, I began working towards two main goals:

1. Create stunning high-quality statues that rival the level of professional pieces.
2. Design my creation process in a way that allows me to charge an affordable price.

I achieved the first goal through countless hours of sculpting practice over many years and continue to hone my skills, seeking to improve my craft. The second goal I achieved by targeting an art style that I’ve always loved but have rarely seen reproduced: classical sculpture. Since I do not need to paint my sculptures, I can focus all my efforts on designing a beautiful solid piece that comes to life with the use of only light and shadow.

If you find my sculptures exceed your expectations while their prices remain affordable, then I am very proud to have achieved my goals. As the popularity and demand for my work increases, I will consider increasing the current price but for now, I think I have hit a good balance. Consider it a thank you for supporting my sculpting passion! 🙂

The sculptures are made out of an extremely hard premium carving stone that feels smooth to the touch and very solid in weight. Although the material is durable and highly resistant to water and UV light, dropping them can still result in damage so please be careful! After all, this is Graphesium Fine Sculptures, not Graphesium Fun Action Figures.

All my busts are 1/4 scale. This means, including the base, they stand about 10-12 inches tall, depending on the original height proportions of the character. As a collector myself, I strictly follow this scale so all my statues are collectible! If I ever change my sculpture scales, I will let you know and send you a free replacement with any future order you make.

If you want a larger or smaller-scaled sculpture, you will need to contact me for a custom commission.

Check my Custom Commissions page so you have an idea of my pricing for original work. If that price is within your range, contact me for further discussion.

If your character is very popular, there is a good chance I will sculpt them in the future. I keep an updated list of upcoming sculptures on my homepage (at the bottom). If your desired character is original or you want a specific character other than the ones in my store, you will need to contact me for a custom commission.

I love sculpting faces so busts are my specialty. Being able to capture the emotion of a character in clay and stone is a truly wonderful thing to master.