HOWTO make a molded portrait-gourd

Instructables member TimAnderson has a great HOWTO for growing molded "portait gourds," a technique from China and would work with other vegetables. He starts with a 3D sculpture of his subject, creates a mold, and then coaxes the veg to grow within the mold's constraints.

This mold has a flexible rubber lining which makes it easy to remove from the gourd. A plaster mold adheres to the gourd more tenaciously and usually the mold is destroyed in the course of removing it from around the gourd.
The gourd is then allowed to dry slowly, and the outer coating called the "cuticle" is removed. Then the finishing steps, if any, are done.
On this gourd, the details of the face and hair were then traced with the point of a jade knife to enhance the detail, It was dyed with dark tea, and a coat of varnish was applied to make it shiny.

Portrait Gourds Grown in Molds (via Make)

I write books. My latest is a YA science fiction novel called Homeland (it's the sequel to Little Brother). More books: Rapture of the Nerds (a novel, with Charlie Stross); With a Little Help (short stories); and The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow (novella and nonfic). I speak all over the place and I tweet and tumble, too.

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This is very cool, and would be really interesting to try, but I’m sorry, that thing looks like a turd.
- Bastiaan van der Peet
  
  The gourd in the picture has already been dyed. The natural color is much less turd-like.
- mobobo
  
  pinch off a portrait – perfect for the shitheads in your life
glatt1

Tim Anderson is always doing the coolest stuff.
BrotherPower

Dibs on Jesus and the Virgin Mary. Y’all can have Elvis.
- knijon
  
  A commenter at Instructables intimated that you could do other veggies with a Jesus mold, slip them into your local grocery store, and wait for the “miracle” to show up on the local news.
http://dustindriver.com dustindriver

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I want a model of my own skull. Alls it’ll take is a 3D MRI and a 3D printer…

Is that too macabre?
- robotnik
  
  Just macabre enough.
IamInnocent

Fertilize with Voodoo juice.
Antinous / Moderator

Honestly, if you want a homunculus that much, it’s easier to just summon a demon and ask for one.
- http://halfbakedmaker.org Robert Baruch
  
  Or you can try to coax out the one living just behind your eyes.
  - Antinous / Moderator
    
    My bodily humors are perfectly balanced, thank you.
- miasm
  
  undoubtedly. Actually taking possession of it, however, is another matter entirely.
  And that’s not a phone you can hear ringing!
  hehehe. Oldest trick in the book.
- http://plagmada.org Tim H
  
  I’ve been trying to fill my hen’s egg for a week now.
http://www.kmoser.com kmoser

Two words: bonsai kitten.
anansi133

It’s like a really slow 3D printer
http://plagmada.org Tim H

Fred Saberhagen taught me that the pressure exerted by a growing gourd can crack open a spaceship bulkhead, therefore I choose to not believe that this molding process works.
CLamb

Interesting. I wonder if this would work with cows?