Face painting; advice request

[zarching]

I'm finishing a 54mm figure. The figure is lying down, propped up on one arm... the other arm will be wiping his brow with a handkerchief. The heat has taken this fellow out of the firing line.

The head is hatless and presently without hair. I'm hoping to sculpt the hair, then place the hand with the hankie partly into the hair.

Although I'm representing a figure which is technically a casualty ....I'm tired of and really don't want the blood dripping down the face, etc ... trying to be more subtle and suggest to the viewer that he has succumbed to the blazing heat.

What I'd like to accomplish:

1. Hatless... can I show a tan line where hat/kepi had been?
2. How can I make (paint) the hair to look all sweaty?
3. How can I sculpt the hair to show where the cap was ... and where the cap's bottom edge pressed down and matted the wet hair?

4. And, lastly, how do you paint dripping sweat on a face?
Should it (the sweat) start at the hair line or the kepi/tan line?

Any help greatly appreciated.

 

[housecarl]

Gerard, I'd go with satin varnish for the sweat. As for a tan line that would depend on how long the chap had been in theatre, and if he had removed his headdress. If this was the case, I would say that he would have a completely tanned face.
Carl.

 

[gordy]

I'm finishing a 54mm figure. The figure is lying down, propped up on one arm... the other arm will be wiping his brow with a handkerchief. The heat has taken this fellow out of the firing line.

The head is hatless and presently without hair. I'm hoping to sculpt the hair, then place the hand with the hankie partly into the hair.

Although I'm representing a figure which is technically a casualty ....I'm tired of and really don't want the blood dripping down the face, etc ... trying to be more subtle and suggest to the viewer that he has succumbed to the blazing heat.

What I'd like to accomplish:

1. Hatless... can I show a tan line where hat/kepi had been?
2. How can I make (paint) the hair to look all sweaty?
3. How can I sculpt the hair to show where the cap was ... and where the cap's bottom edge pressed down and matted the wet hair?

4. And, lastly, how do you paint dripping sweat on a face?
Should it (the sweat) start at the hair line or the kepi/tan line?

Any help greatly appreciated.

1. Like Carl said depends on the theater / era an extremely subtle difference would be effective
2. Painted flat (2D) on the scalp and forehead area
3. I presume the head has no headgear ? if so a run a flat file or sand paper around the crown to make a rutted out area to simulate the hat hair -
4. Carl has it again, slight and subtle satin varnishes!

Hope that helps!

 

[IIICorps]

Most of what you want to do is not likely to be too visible in 54mm. I would not make the attempt to show sweat on his face. The act of mopping his brow with his handkerchief will tell viewers what he's doing.

Show where he has sweated through his uniform.

 

[Einion]

1. Hatless... can I show a tan line where hat/kepi had been?
Yep, sure. Are you asking whether you should or how to do it?

2. How can I make (paint) the hair to look all sweaty?
Darker, slight gloss. Work from photos ideally!

3. How can I sculpt the hair to show where the cap was ... and where the cap's bottom edge pressed down and matted the wet hair?
Again I'd suggest working from photos if you can, but it can be pretty much like the mental image.

4. And, lastly, how do you paint dripping sweat on a face?
Very very carefully! But honestly at this scale it would be hard for the viewer to see it unless they were right up close. Generally sweaty skin I think is absolutely something we should try to replicate in miniature (even at much smaller scales than this) but individual sweat rivulets I don't think I'd really aim for below about 70mm.

Einion