Making Talos Awakes – Part 5 of 20
The next stage of the restoration was to tackle Talos’ knees. Unfortunately they had suffered from a significant deterioration over the years since the making of ‘Jason and the Argonauts’.
Talos’ knees before repair
A section below the right kneecap had split and moved out of position and so required a transplant. The area below the left kneecap, to the top of the calf muscle, had largely disintegrated. Which left me little trace of the original form to work from.
Talos’ knees before repair, showing significant levels of deterioration
Knee reconstruction
Right knee transplant and wax reconstruction
Deep cracks crisscrossed both kneecaps. By filling and cleaning back to the level of the high points I was able to restore the original shape. To make the double lines below the right kneecap flow correctly, I transplanted a section into the correct position. Lastly I modelled the form to a finish in wax.
Misaligned section marked | Following corrective graft | Knee after wax repair
Left knee wax reconstruction
Once I’d successfully repaired the right knee structure I measured across to the left knee that I’d rebuilt with wax. In this manner I was able to reproduced the right under-knee structure on the left.
Unfortunately, there were few reference points remaining on the left side of the knee to the top of the calf. The area is visible in the film at 34:05, when Talos climbs down from his plinth (see banner image). However, due to the distance of the shot, little detail is visible. So I make an educated guess at the remaining structure based on the form of the right knee.
Extensive left knee wax reconstruction and modelling
Remaining associated tasks
A few tasks knee related tasks remained. Including blending the wax knee repairs into the surrounding structures, applying texture and filling the shins. However, I chose to delay this work until I’d completed other structural work. Otherwise the delicate surface of the wax repairs would likely be damaged by subsequent handling.
These sculptures were hand made by Raven Armoury in association with The Ray & Diana Harryhausen Foundation.
Based on effects characters created by Ray Harryhausen for a Charles H. Schneer Production.
TM & © Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
