The First Pour

My first fabric formwork pour was a success! Using three assembled pieces, I was able to create a concrete that molded to the fabric between support points. The assembly had three pieces-a base on which the support points were glued, a lower frame over which the fabric was stretched tightly and a third frame into which I poured the concrete. To make sure the concrete wouldn't adhere to the fabric I applied several layers of spray shellac as well as petroleum jelly to the fabric. On the next pour I might not apply so much petroleum as it did affect the surface texture even if it made it very easy to pull the concrete away from the fabric. My next step is to make an inverse mold of this mold but stretching the fabric over the already poured concrete and pouring new concrete over that. Below are some pictures of the process. The first is the three frames unassmebled, the second the assembled frames with the concrete poured, and the last the finished product.