1/16 African Gladiator

[Guest]

John - He's not big, it's just that 1/35 figures are so small!

Jim - I think I find dark flesh easier to do because it is one of those rare cases where you can actually work dark to light.

Steven - Thanks for looking in. I am enjoying this one.

The next stage (and having found out that mere figure painting is not scale modelling please forgive me):



The arm guard was very fiddly to paint and took ages. I went on to paint the shield, but totally messed it up - fortunately I have a spare.

[stillp]

having found out that mere figure painting is not scale modelling please forgive me

Peter, sorry about that, but I think that figure painting is more art than modelling. That doesn't affect my appreciation of the skill involved, as shown by yourself and others, and isn't intended to be derogatory - quite the opposite.
A question for you figure painters though - can you / do you paint figures in 2D, i.e. on canvas?

Pete

[Guest]

Hi Pete - Well, there can be quite a lot of modelling involved in constructing a figure. This one was a kit, with all of the build requirements that involves, and no different from putting together an Airfix Spitfire in my opinion. Added to that, I adapted the kit, swapping parts and making new ones from scratch. Of course the degree of work involved will vary with each figure, and I can't argue that busts for example are challenging models to put together, but it feels like modelling to me.

I'm sorry to have taken offence, but figure 'modelling' used to be a mainstay of the hobby, back in the day. These days, we figure people always seem to be defending our right to be included, which is just nuts.

Re: 2D painting. I trained as an illustrator and have painted on paper/canvas all of my life. I don't do any of that now, having got thoroughly sick and tired of the art world (now there's commercialism and politics run wild).

[stillp]

Ah, OK Peter, never having made a figure, I hadn't appreciated the construction involved.

Pete

[Guest]

No problem Pete - perhaps I should challenge you to make Miniart's 1/16 Samurai figure - I've failed twice!

[Si Benson]

Peter,
I always look in to see what your currently tackling, even if I don’t comment or hit the like button....top work on this piece....certainly wouldn’t want to bump into him down a dark alley:surprised:

[Richard48]

Nice work Peter.Love the lower garments colour.He would make a nice Zulu conversion.Smashing painting once again.
Richard

[scottie3158]

Peter,
Great work as always. May I ask what golds and brasses you use as they always look very bright mine always seem grainy.

[JR]

No problem Pete - perhaps I should challenge you to make Miniart's 1/16 Samurai figure - I've failed twice!

Peter.
No no you wouldn't inflict that on Peter would you, show some leniency. :smiling2:
John.

[Guest]

Si - Comment isn't obligatory (but nice when it happens!). Many thanks.

Richard - The head is from Verlinden's Zulu figure. I sacrificed an old version I'd done some time ago for this build.

Scottie - The metallics are just Vallejo Model Colour. They can look grainy in extreme close up, but you can smooth them down with a blunt instrument (!) when they're almost dry, which does seem to even them out. I also use a purer gold artist's acrylic for the highlights.

John - No, I wouldn't really inflict that on anybody - not even my worst enemy.

[Guest]

Fixed up the new shield:



Part of the problem with the first version was that I'd cut it down and hadn't done a great job of sanding down the back - I'd already painted the front when I realised I had a problem. I've left this one full-sized, but instead of using the kit decal, which I've used on an earlier version of the figure, I decided to decorate the front with strengthening strakes (split cocktail stick) and bronze plates (lead foil). The plates will have rivets added at the corners.

[Guest]

This one's finished:



Unfortunately the second shield also went pear-shaped, so I dug out the one I'd saved from my defunct Varangian project. I think I prefer it, as I'm sure that the Romans would have tried to give an African gladiator a more tribal (or Barbarian i.e non-Roman) look. I spent some time trying to tidy it up, but it was a pretty rough sculpt in the first place - it will do.

The final job was to add the dropped dagger (Verlinden Assyrian I think) and make a strap for it.

[scottie3158]

Peter,
A stunner as usual.

[Guest]

Cheers Scottie - At least I finished this one!

[SteveH]

Morning Peter

Another super figure, well done,

Is the other gladiator still in your cabinet for a side by side?

What's next?

Have a good weekend

Regards

Steve H