Back to the Brushes 142

First base layer on the elf's flesh blocked in last night. Looking to achieve a paler flesh tone than normal, not quite Milk Bottle Scots but paler than normal, so starting with Foundry Flesh B and working up through C to F as the final highlight. Sorry should have said, using the expert range here - not that makes you an expert just gives a wider range of colours.

Not the best pictures and only one layer down so far and perhaps the figure has lost some of the clean surface from its original casting. Still has taken the first coat well and the others will be thin layers to build the flesh tone rather than cover the black base coat.

More to follow later

Cheers

Dance of Bronze 16

So, something that has been completed and to be honest has been for sometime now with this being the first skirmisher stand for a Basic Impetus Macedonian army to suit both Philip and Wee 'Eck and the Macks.

The figures are from Foundry's original range of Ancient Greeks and are clear sculpts that do exactly what it says on the tin - Greek archers. A limited colour scheme and no variance on the figures at the time of painting - last year's Analogue Painting Challenge - was a move towards how the full army will be painted, limited colours within stands to reflect an organised force. More that can be said of here.

Anyway enough babbling, the pictures.

The basing mirrors the style used on the Spartans earlier in the logs of this blog. Go on have a look if you want to here allowing the figures to be used for just about any army from that period. All good there. 

Cheers for now 

Back to the Brushes 141

So what has been happening here? Well, truthfully not really that much on the hobby front,  a lot of thinking about things and talk about painting but little direct action. It is all a question of time really, so when a window opened the other night the following appeared.

The orcs are just for the fun of it and why not? Avoiding the bright green flesh used for so many orcs and looking for a more strained and washed out colour picked Soviet Winter Green from Foundry's now discontinued range of WW2 colours. The figure second from the left has the full triad showing from shade to base to highlight. Fun to paint these guys regardless of colours.

Next up is a Citadel High Elf from circa 1984 and the C08 range. Touched up the undercoat for this one and have some thoughts on this figure being in autumnal colours to suit the changing to the season here with the base showing the change of the seasons too.

For all that this figure is the best part of thirty-three years old, she is in good condition after being stripped from an old oil and enamel painting job and then again from acrylics. Somewhere there is a duplicate figure so might paint them as an autumn spring pair but will think on that.

Since both pictures are retro based here is a bit of Bowie

There will be something finished next post.

Cheers for now

Back to the Brushes 140

The other night came to thinking about styles of painting and dragged out a memory of a Neoclassic painting by Jacques-Louis David

The Death of Marat

Can't recall the whole back story to this, something to do with post Revolutionary France and waiting on the "knock" on the door and Marat decided not to face Madame Guillotine. For a dark subject matter found this picture very peaceful with a strong sense of purpose/principle to it, 

Always liked the use of darkness in this picture, makes the other colours more vibrant and clearer.

This picture got me looking at how I paint miniatures or wee men as they are often called. David in his later life was a teacher too many painters and emphasised the contour in his teachings. In miniature painting the contour exists in the quality of the sculpting rather than the drawn line that David expressed in his teachings, both however are equally important and more so when colour is added. Whether layering, blending or blocking paint on a miniature the contours of the sculpt guide the painter in achieving the impression of tone and light on the miniature, in fact with some miniatures the quality of the sculpting is best seen once paint or undercoat has been applied. 

Next time you paint consider the not only the colours that you are using but the lines and contours the sculptor used to create the miniature you are painting before adding the paint. Perhaps that sense of peace and purpose I found in the picture above will be there too. 

I was asked by a friend the other day how many brushes are in the picture of the painting table, is it about fifty? The answer is 121 in varying states of use from virginal to well loved to totally fucked, with the oldest being approximately thirty-one years old and still serviceable. Shows you that if you look after somethings they will be there for a long time. 

Cheers for now

Back to the Brushes 139

Not much to report this month so far, in fact nothing has changed as the brushes have remained in the jar so far this month. Not due to lack of interest or motivation just that time has been spent on other things this last couple of weeks.

Took this picture as a snapshot in time on Saturday 14th October and never managed to post it, which about sums up everything at present.

The lack of order on the painting table shows a variety of different projects that have stalled this month. A reflection on the cluttered desk, cluttered mind statement perhaps?

On a side issue, was saddened to hear of Tom Petty's sudden death and here are some great tracks from the man.

   

 Cheers for now