Welcome to Ippolito Studios!

Ippolito Studios was established in December of 2008, in an effort to market the artwork of Bernard Ippolito. A one on one student of Louis Paul Jonas and over 50 years in the taxidermy business (30 of which were working at the Jonas Brothers Studios in New York) have provided Ben with a wealth of experience with almost every form of wildlife. Ben’s knowledge and unequaled attention to detail are the key characteristics that make his sculptures so life like. Ben’s artwork both builds on and carries on the rich tradition and style of Louis Paul Jonas.

Process:
Long before the first piece of clay is modeled, hours of research go into studying photographs, and in some cases taking measurements from the actual animal being sculpted. This research is critical to creating a sculpture that is properly proportioned and textured to look and feel real. When the size and position of the sculpture is defined, an armature is fabricated out of steel and wood, similar in design to the skeletal structure of the animal. Clay is then added to the armature as the sculpting process begins. Once the sculpture has been completed, the molding process is started. This is also performed by Ben to ensure no detail of the original piece is left out. Several layers of urethane rubber are carefully applied over the clay, until the proper thickness of the mold is achieved. A fiberglass jacket is then built around the rubber to provide additional support. When the mold is complete, it is acceptable for use in both resin castings as well as making wax castings used in the bronze process.

All of the sculptures are available in either bronze or hand painted cast resin. Only 30 castings in each type of material will ever be produced. The mold will then be retired from production. All of the sculptures come with a brass plate mounted to the base that is engraved with the production number of the piece. A signed certificate of authenticity is also included with each sculpture.

The hand painted copies of the sculptures are cast in solid urethane resin that is high quality and extremely strong and durable. Ben performs all of the painting himself. The bronze copies of the sculptures are cast at a local foundry near Memphis, TN. It was a painstaking process trying to find a foundry that could cast the sculptures without sacrificing any of the detail applied to the original sculpture. The search was well worth it. We cannot thank Larry Lugar at the Lugar Bronze Foundry enough.

The hand painted resin and bronze castings are mounted on an African hardwood called Bubinga (commonly referred to as African Rosewood). The bases for the painted resin sculptures are recessed to allow Ben to add a natural habitat to the finished piece. Each piece is finished a little different, allowing no two finished pieces to be identical.