MIKE BLANK - Post your favourites

Thanks guys! Fun to see these older stuff, some are almost 20 years old! Like a time capsule almost

Hi Guys

Adding this released Jan 2022

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My favorite.

Mikes wonderful diorama from World Expo 22



Enjoy

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Saw it "live" in Eindhoven........picture does not do justice...............the central horseman, the one with no helmet, is way more ahighlighted than anythign else and catches your eye immediately........amazing

One from 2005

British Infantry from Marlborough's time



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Another couple from Mr B's hands

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Dear friends!
Thanks for posting these, I am honored!
But I do have to
confess that the Charles I scene is not by me... But created by Italian master modeller Riccardo Ruberti!
All the best
Mike

Great other stuff by you none the less

Mike the Swede said:

Dear friends!
Thanks for posting these, I am honored!
But I do have to
confess that the Charles I scene is not by me... But created by Italian master modeller Riccardo Ruberti!
All the best
Mike

Click to expand...

My apologies to Riccardo ...it certainly has your style .....fine modelling by the artist

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Not seen this one before ....apparently this is over 10 years old and Mike calls it a old sin..........wish I could sin like this ...lol



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Thanks for posting these, I really can't see them often enough. He is Europe's Bill Horan.
Scotty.

Not seen this before

Apparently this was a prize at Euromilitaire ....one very lucky winner ....

The winner was Chris Seeley ...now in his personal collection

ENJOY

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Another rather fine piece of artwork



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Another beauty from Mike

Who can resist a Napoleonic piece

"To the Guns" .....



Enjoy

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Mike painted this one in 2019, it was a raffle figure for the release of his great book "Color Harmony"



What a great raffle prize !

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Talking about books. What happened to Mike Blanks new book he was talking about. Did I miss the release?

Not at all my friend! It is waiting for a release date now... And you will all be the first to know when!

Have a great Sunday!
Mike

From Social media ....Thanks to Mike

Background info on the thinking behind the Vignette

"My Kingdom For A Horse"

Richard III. The man, the king and the vignette.

Villain to some, heroes to others.
Immortalized by Shakespeare, Richard III has fascinated historians, authors and film directors and continues to do so.
Here we have a man, the last king of the Plantagenet line, malformed by scoliosis, making a last stand at the battle of Bosworth field in 1485, his body disappearing for centuries only to be found under a parking lot!
You couldn't make up a story like that!
And yours truly have also been fascinated with this man ever since seeing Lawerence Olivier's "Richard III" as a young boy. With all this I believed it was indeed time to do a vignette of Richard making his last stand at Bosworth, a battle that changed English History in 1485 and that still intrigues and fascinates us...

The scene.
As I wanted to show Richard making his last stand, he was to be the very center of this vignette, the other two figures only to be "supporting actors".
The figures were sculpted with my usual mix of Magic Sculpt with a small amount of Duro/Green Stuff added. With Richard I wanted to show an almost frantic look and expression, so I added several separate hair strands to give a wild and furious appearance. Also, Richard is the only figure not wearing a helmet, making him stand out as the focal point. (according to legend Richard lost his helmet with the crown upon it, to be picked up and placed on Henry Tudor's head, crowning him at the battlefield).

Richards suffered from scoliosis, something that was confirmed when his body was discovered in 2012. As the king had a suit of armor tailor made to his specifications, it would correct his posture almost like a steel corset.
(There is a fascinating documentary on Youtube about a man with almost identical scoliosis and how an armor is made for him, showing what was possible in terms of movements and such. Highly recommended!)
With this in mind I opted for a pose of Richard, full of aggression, fury and frustration, rather than a "malformed" shape which no doubt would look out of scale and out of place.

The other two figures, ordinary foot soldiers were sculpted to show fear, desperation and despair. This would contrast with the fury seen in Richards pose and expression. Also note that these soldiers are not holding any weapons, they being on the grassy marsh where this last stand took place,
I wanted to show Richard as the last man standing, literally, still armed and prepared to fight until the end...

Painting.
As normal these days, the figures were painted with acrylics such as Scale 75, AK, Vallejo, Andrea and artists tube acrylics. In other words, I use whatever it takes regardless of brand. For brushes I have started to use the Scale 75 sable ones and I do like them a lot, for this project I only used a no 2 and a no 4 brush. Remember that a larger brush will hold a lot more paint, just make sure that the brush has a fine and sharp point.

I truly enjoyed doing this scene of this most controversial king, the last of the Plantagenet who made a last in August at Bosworth field in 1485 and who continues to fascinate.



WIP pictures

Sculpting



Painting in Progress



Completed piece



ENJOY the sheer talent

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Mike!!! Where is the book??