- 1
Sketch out the human figure on the block of soapstone. You only have to do this for one side. Concentrate on simply getting the basic shapes marked out. Use an oval for the head, a rectangle for the torso and an upside-down triangle for the hips. Draw cylinders for the arms and legs. - 2
Chisel out the basic shape. Use a rubber mallet and begin chiseling out the basic outline of your figure. It is alright to keep the figure two-dimensional at this point. Simply carve out the pattern you have drawn from the stone. - 3
Refine the shape of the figure. Using a pointed chisel, begin applying harder strokes to the areas that will have the least amount of stone. These are the neck, the gap between the arms and the body, and in between the legs. - 4). Shape the anatomical details with a riffler. Using a motion similar to brushing your teeth, scrape off the excess stone. Carve out round shapes for the shoulders and biceps. Create detailed pecs by removing stone under and between the pectoral muscles. Do the same for the abdominal muscles. Leave a small rounded sphere for the elbows, knees and ankle bone.
- 5). Carve the nose on the face with a small triangle using a small pick. Remove the stone on the sides of the nose so that it sticks out naturally from the face. Using the same technique, carve small circles for the eyes and remove the surrounding stone. Add the mouth with a small horizontal line below the nose. Add lips by leaving stone above and below the mouth line while removing stone just above and below the outer boundaries of the mouth area.
- 6
Polish the figure by using a 1,000-grit sand paper. After you have sanded the figure, dip a new piece of sand paper into some water and sand the figure again. Remove the stone paste by dipping the figure in water. This will give the figure a highly polished look and expose the colorful variances in the rock.
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