Here is the wire frame that establishes the shape of the fish. I have used 1-inch thin-wall square steel tube for the underlying structure.

In this picture you see a pin-and-socket arrangement. I welded a pair of small square pins to the torso side of the seam, and a receiving pair of larger square sockets to the fish side.  One set simply fits inside the other, with gravity holding it in place.

This arrangement lets me break apart the big armature to into smaller pieces at the torso, the base of the tail, and each arm at the shoulder. I’m making this sculpture in my apartment, so this armature has to come up to my second-story apartment, in pieces, via the stairs, and fit through an ordinary man-sized door.

Photos of the complete armature and the tail section after the jump.

Notice the break point at the tail. My apartment ceilings are only 10 feet tall — and the sculpture will be 15. By breaking the tail at this point, I can position the sculpture “upright” to apply the clay.

It is critical to sculpt the figure in the position it will ultimately be viewed from. If I were to sculpt it on its side, that could seriously damage the final composition and look of the piece.

This is the tail section’s pin-and-socket arrangement.