BRINGING THE LEGEND TO LIFE

The Making of the Argonath – page three

©  Lotrscenerybuilder 2008

The hand-on-axis. Already we could vision the finished model standing proudly at our desk. Thanks to this object we suddenly got a clear idea about the fabrication of the manifolded robe.

A single slab of MDF sufficed for the complex west side of the statue. We broke this slab into several parts and glued them back together in slightly odd positions.

Two ribs were added to act like folds. The red line marks the boundary of future rocks. We didn’t know for sure at this stage how long exactly the robe would become.

More details were added…

…including some cracks and fissures.

The inward side of the robe was made in the same manner.

The shoulder-part had to join both robe panels. Since Manwë had not yet revealed to us the exact position of the head we felt slightly uneasy about finishing the arm at this stage.

A kind of ‘lid’ was produced to cover the gap between both panels…

… for which the King showed himself grateful:
“Bless you, laddie!”

The same approach was employed on the Isildur statue.