Definition:Slip-Casting

Slip-casting is a ceramic forming technique in which liquid clay — called slip — is poured into a plaster mold. As the plaster absorbs moisture from the slip, a layer of clay builds up against the mold walls. After a sufficient thickness accumulates, the excess slip is poured out, and the cast piece is released from the mold once leather-hard. Slip-casting allows the precise, repeatable reproduction of complex forms — including the subtle anatomical detail of dog figurines — and became the dominant production method for commercial ceramic dog figurines from the early 20th century onward. Earlier pieces were often press-molded (clay pressed directly into molds) or hand-modeled. Slip-cast pieces can sometimes be identified by the thin, even wall thickness and the absence of fingermarks or tool marks that characterize hand-built pieces.