Behind the mask
Ahead of the 2017 EE British Academy of Film & TV Arts (BAFTA) awards ceremony we visit the west London foundry where a small team of craftsmen transform raw metal into the famous masks
WORDS: JOHN C SILCOX
PHOTOGRAPHY: DAVID RYLE
STORY FIRST APPEARED HERE IN AUDI MAGAZINE
Melting bronze gives off a mesmerising bright orange glow. As we gaze at it through the open top of the gas furnace, it feels like we’re staring into the mouth of a volcano. Lazy bubbles slowly disrupt the enticingly smooth surface of the shining liquid but the brutal heat emanating from it makes you think twice about getting any closer.
To our untrained eyes the view hasn’t changed much for the past 20 minutes since the raw bronze ingots dissolved but, beside us, furnaceman Billy Smith has noticed something. He grabs his lance thermometer and checks the molten metal’s temperature. ‘Spot on 1090°C,’ he exclaims, after checking the digital gauge on the instrument. ‘That’s the perfect temperature to cast phosphor bronze or PB3, which is the proper name for the type of alloy we use to make the BAFTA masks. At this heat bronze is as liquid as water.’
To put things into perspective, that’s more than 12 times the normal engine temperature of the Audi A4 3.0 TDI in which we have driven here. So, for safety, Billy is dressed from head to toe in a thick woollen cloak and hood, as well as a pair of fire-retardant protective boots. He and his foundry colleagues clear the space around them before beginning to cast the statues. It’s a well-rehearsed dance, which isn’t surprising as their company, New Pro Foundries, has been making the masks for BAFTA since 1976.
The design of the award itself is older. It was first made in 1955 by the American sculptor Mitzi Cunliffe and is based on the concept of the theatrical tragicomic mask. The hollow reverse of the mask bears an electronic symbol around one eye and a screen symbol around the other, linking dramatic production and television technology. Cinema icon Charlie Chaplin became the first ever recipient of the bronze award when he was honoured as an Academy Fellow at the opening of the BAFTA’s new premises in 1976.
‘To maintain consistency to the original sculpture that was made out of plasticine, we have a master model of the mask made in resin,’ explains New Pro Foundries Managing Director Patrick Helly. ‘From this we have made casting moulds that we encase in special quick-drying sand to form the single-use sand moulds that the molten metal is poured into. These have to be fired so they aren’t porous.’
When the moulds are ready the team pours in the liquid metal. Once cool, the moulds are broken and the metal masks are removed. Afterwards, they are sent away to be polished and then mounted on a dark marble footing.
‘Few people actually realise the amount of work that goes into creating these awards,’ says Helly. ‘But having made 200 a year, for the past 40 years, it definitely gives you some perspective. Sand casting is becoming a rare skill in the UK and we are proud to be celebrating outstanding performance in one area of the arts with our own version in another.’