Mahler - bust of Gustav Mahler - copper/bronze patina

A few years back, my wife was looking for a bust of her favorite composer for the piano, and we realized that nobody has made busts of composers since the days of Brahms and Wagner. Beethoven, Mozart, Bach and a few 19th century greats ---no one from the 20th century. As a sculptor and music afficionado, I felt it was my duty to start making the molds. The finished sculptures are all hand cast and finished. Hydrocal (high-density plaster) casts are hand finished (mostly filling air holes and rebuilding ears, etc.) then varnished with tinted Modge-Podge and/or given a patina with a special day's blend (often un-reproduceable) of denatured alcohol, powdered graphite, multiple food colori ng (one dash green, one dash red, a leetle yellow but never blue) and acrylic metallic craft paints depending on the mood. The deep red bronze patina is achieved with a base wash of mahogany stain before adding the personal mixture mentioned above. On occasion, a patina is achieved with a $3 spray-can of Sage Green followed by the magic mixture. You can do it yourself...only what makes the mixture work is the hour of buffing with a very very soft cloth and a little forehead oil. Only my forehead works of course.