My First bust

[tonydawe]

G'day Steve,

Oh yeah, its an obsession alright. I started sculpting exacty a week ago and I haven't painted anything since. I can't remember the last time I went a week without painting something.

Cheers

 

[tonydawe]

Latest progress pic of my 1/5th scale bust of General Monash.

I've now bulked out the upper torso and got the shoulders and upper arms shaped.

The next step is to sculpt the General Officer's Field Service peaked cap, then start to add uniform details, eppaulettes, service ribbons, sleeves, collar, gorget patches and badges of rank etc.. Plenty of detailed research required before I tackle all that.

I'm taking my time and checking my progress in the miror regularly to check for proper proportions and symmetry.

Please bear in mind this is my first bust and I've only been sculpting for a couple of weeks, so any advice/ comments would be very welcome.

Cheers

 

[Mark S]

Tony,very good progress so far.
In fact it's quite amazing work for your first bust!
Well done,mate.
I'm really keen to see this one finished.

 

[tonydawe]

G'day Mark,

You're too kind mate.

I'm working on the hat tonight and will post a few more pics in a couple of days.

Cheers

 

[Dan Morton]

Too cool Tony! Keep at it - - as if you actually COULD stop - - hahahaha! I have enjoyed just about every minute of this little obsession and I hope you do to! Seriously mate - you've made a very good start!

All the best,
Dan

 

[tonydawe]

Hi Dan The Man,

Thanks for your kind words and your encouragement. This sculpting business has taken over my life. I haven't touched a paint brush in over 3 weeks and the carpet in my hobby room is full of dust and bits of clay. I hope I haven't forgotten how to paint when the time comes!!

Cheers

 

[alamac]

G'Day Tony
Yep i'm back on line after 4 weeks great to see a true Aussie hero being honoured in this way.
Mate you're doing a great job on your first bust,well done, as i said to you when you visited Brisbane it will become an obsession .I guess Lorraine will be looking foe that frypan to greet this follicly challenged creature again.Have you set up mirrors behind the bust and looked past the bust and used the reflections to check your work as well.Keep up the good work.
Cheers Mate i'll give you a ring tonight.
Alan

 

[tonydawe]

Welcome to the 21st Century

G'day Broadband Al,

Thanks for your comments and your encouragement mate. You know, this is all your fault

Yes, I've set up a mirror behind the bust to check for symmetry and its amazing how easy it is to spot mistakes this way. A great tip thanks.

In answer to your question about uniform details, I've attached a few reference pics of Monash, which I'm using. Please note the leather strap along the brim of his cap and its position in relation to the General Staff cloth badge on the cap.

Cheers

 

[vergilius]

I'm very curious of the hat !

 

[tonydawe]

Hi Vergilius,

Here's the latest WIP pics of the hat.

It's taken me two nights of sculpting and sanding to get to this point.

Cheers

 

[darkeye]

i guess its too late to warn you over the dangers of sculpting!! i actully lie awake sometimes just 'noodling' problems, solutions and ideas!
good start mate as all have said, my first looked nothing like this.
may i recommend a good book for you- as you helped me with painting tips- have a look at ' sculpting lifelike figures in polymer clay' by Katherine Dewey, it has a good section by section breakdown of the sum of the parts and is aimed at the beginner.
the section on heads has tips and diagrams on facial angles , proportions and gender differences ect and is well worth its weight in dollars/gold/pounds! i would recommend it to any-one.
my tips would be ; for the next piece, start with a suedo skull as this stops the sculpt sneaking away from you. apparently the human eye is 24mm so you can scale your eyes by dividing this figure by your scale and use ball bearings for the eye-ball. a set of dividers are a must.
books on drawing fashion figures seem to contain more proportional info than regular drawing/anatomy books- as i just found out!. oh and NEVER QUIT!!

 

[tonydawe]

G'day Tim,

Thanks for your comments mate, greatly appreciated...and yes, it's too late to warn me about the dangers of sculpting. I'm already infected with the bug!!!

I've checked out Katherine Dewey on Google and her books look very interesting. Thanks for the tip.

Cheers

 

[WPS]

Well Tony what can I say, other than that I'm flabbergasted.
It's a shame that the world had to wait all those years for you to start sculpting.......
This is one thread I'm certainly going to follow.
I hope you are enjoying every step along the way and that this bust is going to enspire you to do more.

Groeten(greetings) Willem

 

[tonydawe]

Groeten Willem,

Thanks so much for your kind words.

To be honest, I was always a bit scared of trying my hand at sculpting. I didn't think I'd be any good at it, so I just never tried - what a wimp eh? I've spent to past 30 years painting other people's sculpted figures and was content to be a painter. Just like the quote in your signature - what a "fool" I've been.

It was only through the persistence and encouragement of my friends Alan Mackie and Phil Walden that I dared to have a go at it, and now that I've started I am already planning my next sculpting adventure.

I want to take my time and do my very best on this bust of Monash, a man that I greatly admire and respect. I'm sure I'll improve my skills as I practice more.

With so much encouragement from fellow Planeteers I wouldn't be able to stop, even if I wanted to (which I don't).

Cheers

 

[alamac]

G'Day Tony
Great to have a chat last night. As Darkeye says it is an obsession . I did a little research after we spoke on his cap which you have . Mate he's really coming along niceley, ? is his head set on the body or not finished yet , as his neck looks a bit Gladstone Smallish . I'm really pleased you're into sculpting and enjoying it as i have said to you it's always a challenge
the cap is coming along beautifully and i see what you meant about the strap.
Talk Soon
AL

 

[tonydawe]

Hi Al,

The cap is not fixed to the head, and the head has not been fixed to the upper torso. At the moment its been held together with Blu Tak so I can see what the whole piece looks like, and then I can pull them apart and work on each piece separately.

The neck hasn't been done yet. I need to work on that before a start on the uniform details - ie: shirt, tie, collar, Sam Browne belt etc. He looks like a Wallaby prop forward at the moment doesn't he?

Cheers

 

[darkeye]

more useful stuff!

hi tony,
another book you would like- the second i bought and used- is by Andrea press is Converting and Scratchbuilding Model figures, isbn 8 431926 170119 ,or Andrea press no. AP-005 if you dont have it.
great bit at the back on busts and lots of proportion dicussions at the start.

By far the most useful and a bit of a sculptors 'Bible' is, Sciulpting the Human Figure in Clay' by Bruno Lucchesi; isbn 0-8230-3096-2. first book i bought and much thumbed. still studying anatomy to this day since my earlier and embarrassing pics were shown in '05!

keep going!

regards --- tim.

 

[tonydawe]

G'day Tim,

Thanks again for your help and encouragement. I've seen the Bruno Lucchesi book before, and as you say, it is the figure sculptor's bible.

On a recent business trip to Brisbane (where I was infected with the sculpting bug) my mate Alan Mackie gave me a set of DVD's called "The Art of Sculpting by Phillippe Faraut", which are amazing.

Phillippe's DVD's show, in a very simple SBS format, how to create the basic shapes of heads and then develop anatomically correct facial features. He then shows you how to create various ethnic characteristics and facial expressions which help bring a lump of clay to life and infuse it with real personality.

In less than an hour he transform a lump of clay on a stick, into a masterpiece that would look at home in The Louvre.

These DVD's have been a revelation to me, and provided me with the inspiration to rip open a packet of DAS modelling clay and start sculpting on the spot.

The advantage of the DVD format over a book is that I can sit in front of the TV and sculpt as I watch, then pause, rewind and watch it over again. Its fun to put it on fast forward and watch him create a fully sculpted head in 30 seconds.

The only downside is that my lounge room floor is now covered in white dust and bits of clay, and my wife has appointed me OIC Vacuum Cleaner.

If you get an opportunity to buy these DVD's I would highly recommend them.

Cheers

 

[tonydawe]

General Officers Peaked Cap

Hi guys,

I've spent the past couple of nights working on the brim for the peaked cap, and refining the face with some fine sand paper.

I've also attached a reference pic of Lt. General Monash, which I'm using as my primary reference shot for the face and hat.

Hope you like.

Cheers

 

[darkeye]

smooth finish Tony, looks nice. coming along now. wonder if the DAS will cope with detailing?

saw Phlilip Faraut on u-tube, darned good and fast too. check out john Brown too on u-tube. got his vids and they are worht their salt.

regards- tim.