Wax Mannequins and Wax Sculpting History

We are often amazed at how lifelike one can make a wax figurine. Some recall the number of wax museums you could visit when growing up. So what is the history of wax figurines and is wax still being used to create lifelike people?

Beeswax has historically always been an excellent medium for preparing figures and models, either through carving or by casting in molds. At ordinary temperatures, wax can easily be cut and shaped; it melts at a low temperature; it mixes with any coloring matter, and takes surface tints well.  Its texture and consistency may be modified by the addition of earthy matters and oils or fats and when molten, it is highly responsive to impressions from a mold. With wax, once it sets and hardens its form is relatively resilient against ordinary temperature variations, even when it is cast in thin laminae. This is possibly why we have seen wax used for modeling since the Middle Ages.

During the Italian Renaissance, modeling in wax took a position of high importance, and it was practiced by some of the greatest of the early masters. The bronze medallions of Pisanello and of the other famous medalists owe their value to the properties of wax: all early bronzes and metalwork were cast from wax models first. The famous wax bust attributed to Leonardo da Vinci acquired in 1909 by the Museum of Berlin is the work of an English forger who worked about 1840. The wax model of a head, at the Wicar Museum at Lille, belongs probably to the school of Canova, which robs it of none of its exquisite grace.

There are a number of very high quality wax figures from the 16th and 17th centuries, mostly portrait figures and religious or mythological scenes, often with many figures. Antonio Abondio (1538-91) pioneered the colored wax portrait miniature in relief, working mainly for the Habsburg and other courts of Northern Europe, and his son Alessandro continued in his footsteps.

Towards the close of the eighteenth century, modeling of medallion portraits and of relief groups, the latter frequently polychromatic, was in considerable vogue throughout Europe. Many of the artists were women. John Flaxman executed in wax many portraits and other relief figures which Josiah Wedgwood translated into pottery for his Jasperware. The National Portrait Gallery has forty wax portraits, mostly from this period.

Meanwhile, as storefronts were becoming popular as was the rise of the mannequin, the idea of using wax seemed the most apparent solution. With wax, models could be created in the most flattering way to the store’s clothing line. One of these great wax model designers was Pierre Imans a mannequin manufacturer from Paris. Imans was known for bringing a beautiful sense of human element to mannequins by capturing body expressions in wax.  He created interactive compositions of figures, as though they were in the process of living and unaware that they were also being observed.  Heads and torsos were sculpted as one. With a slight turn of the head, a hint of movement was achieved.  Hands were more delicately posed to create storytelling attitudes.

Miss Modesty, a wax mannequin of 1899 is a prime example of the development of storytelling attitudes. She stood in a store window, with hands and arms covering her face, stating reservation and shyness because she was wearing and selling corsets and undergarments.

At the turn of the century, the women's suffrage movement was gaining momentum, a definite influence on the female mannequin.  In fact, a particular Siegel mannequin that was set upon a turning base (she was without legs) translated into a determined, assertive female of that era.  With one arm held back and a hand slightly clenched, her head was high with vision focused straight forward. The other hand was more relaxed, showing a touch of softness. True to the accepted body language of her day, she portrayed the mature woman, with hips thrown back and heavy bosom thrust upwards.

After World War I, countries were plunged into the chaotic realm of picking up the pieces and getting back to the business of normal living. Concurrently, there was a major transition in the type of material used to sculpt mannequins, and there was a move from wax to plaster.

Plaster figures didn't melt in the show windows. They were much lighter in weight, and easier to handle. But at the same time, with plaster, it was more difficult to achieve the detailed features and anatomy that were possible with wax.

Wax figurines are still made today, but not wax mannequins. Today’s mannequin is typically made of fiberglass yet retains the very lifelike features of history’s wax mannequins. Despite the lack of need for mannequins made of wax, the medium of wax is still in high use and may always be due to its numerous qualities.