Make an Ivory Sculpture
Ivory makes for some of the most beautiful sculpture pieces in the world. Many parts of Asia have developed long traditions of ivory sculpture, using the natural hardness and beauty of the ivory to make exquisite art. If you want to make an ivory sculpture follow these steps.
Instructions
1. Find some ivory. Ivory is extremely difficult to come by, especially in Western countries where the buying and selling of ivory is often illegal. If you don't have access to raw ivory, you can buy a larger, existing piece of art made from ivory and use that as your base material. This might end up costing you a lot of money, but if you're set on using ivory there aren't many other options.
2. Make your design. Before you ever pick up a tool you should have a clear idea of what you want to make and how you're going to make it. Do sketches of the piece from multiple angles and include detailing that you want to add to the sculpture. You can refer to ivory sculpture books for inspiration and to see how other artists achieved various effects.
3. Start on an ivory substitute. Since you probably have very little ivory to work with you should start with an ivory substitute to iron out flaws and perfect your sculpture. You can use billiard balls, deer or moose antlers and even the nut of a South American palm tree, called a tagua nut, as effective substitutes. The thigh bone of a cow, however, is the most ivory-like of the substitutes. So, start out with an ivory substitute to correctly execute your sculpture.
4. Get out your tools. To create your sculpture you need to start with the right tools. Ivory is an extremely hard material, making carving and sculpting difficult. You can use a power carving burr to create your sculpture. Hand tools such as palm tools that are sharpened for harder material are also a very good option. For fine detail work or for smaller pieces use dental tools.
