Casting is a manufacturing process by which a liquid material is usually poured into a mold, which contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape, and then allowed to solidify. The solidified part is also known as a casting, which is ejected or broken out of the mold to complete the process. Casting materials are usually metals or various cold setting materials that cure after mixing two or more components together; examples are epoxy, concrete, plaster and clay. Casting is most often used for making complex shapes that would be otherwise difficult or uneconomical to make by other methods

Making bronzes is highly skilled work, and a number of distinct casting processes may be employed, including lost-wax casting (and its modern-day spin-off investment casting), sand casting and centrifugal casting. 

For a large sculpture, the artist will usually prepare small study models until the pose and proportions are determined. An intermediate-sized model is then constructed with all of the final details. For very large works, this may again be scaled to a larger intermediate. From the final scale model, measuring devices are used to determine the dimensions of an armature for the structural support of a full-size temporary piece, which is brought to rough form by wood, cardboard, plastic foam, and/or paper to approximately fill the volume while keeping the weight low. Finally, plaster, clay or other material is used to form the full-size model, from which a mould may be constructed. Alternatively, a large refactory core may be constructed, and the direct-wax method then applied for subsequent investment. Before modern welding techniques, large sculptures were generally cast in one piece with a single pour. Welding allows a large sculpture to be cast in pieces, then joined. After final polishing, corrosive materials may be applied to form a patina, a process that allows some control over the color and finish.