Sculpting Contest

[LCoote]

Quang, I don't think it would be unfair at all if you were to compete, after all it's not really a competition anyway, right ? I would love to see your version.

The 2 month time limit is much more appealing, perhaps I'll have a go, whether or not I'm up to it who knows, I've not sculpted anything in 120mm so that will be a challenge.
Are there any other pictures of Little Hand including a profile , and what's the feather in his hair ?

 

[garyjd]

Leigh, I could not find anything on the net. A frofile or three-quarter view would be nice. I am also trying to make out the details on his scarf. Is that a star shaped broach, or something or other holding it together at the throat? By the way my roughed in anatomy is almost done on the armature, now the slow part starts.~Gary

 

[LCoote]

Gary, I really can't tell exactly what it is, you may well be right.
Look forward to seeing your progress

 

[quang]

Hehe, the learning has already begun!

In 90% of the cases, you only have a front view portrait to start from. So you better learn early on to INTERPRET the features by studying the shadows and highlights to achieve a likeness.

The plume on the head appears to be an eagle breast feather (somewhere between down and a full-grown feather).

The brooch on the scarf is a silver concha (a popular ornament originating from Mexico and the Southwestern US). Some examples here:

http://www.wildnotions.com/catalog.htm

Good luck!

Quang

 

[gordy]

Originally posted by quang@Dec 8 2003, 06:40 AM
So you better learn early on to INTERPRET the features by studying the shadows and highlights to achieve a likeness.

It's so ironic you mention that, in an IM conversation with Anders last Thursday, i told him sculpting is like painting with light and shadows!


P.S. i like the personal project! Those are always 'the best' since there isn't any pressure of a deadline and freedom from 'kit-gineering'

 

[quang]

Alas, Gordy, I fear there's no such thing for me as 'freedom from kit-gineering'

I'm so regularly taken by the technical constraints that it developed into a habit. Just like scraping resin residue off my (thinning) hair :lol:

 

[garyjd]

Quang, Thanks for the additional info. As for the broach it appears star-shaped not round. it looks round on the bottom half but does not look that way on the top half. It almost looks like some kind of beaded object placed below it that is looped over top and then under the scarf.~Gary

 

[quang]

Could be. But don't let it distract you from the face.

You can always research the accoutrement in due time

 

[garyjd]

Quang, Thanks my friend, I'm not too worried about it. Here is where I am at so far.

STEP 2+

I've jumped ahead where there are two layers of material added to the brass rod/tube armature. The first layer was an A&B and Sculpey mix. The second layer filled out the head and shoulders more. There is a bit of tidying up to do before the fun starts. I will start to carve in basic features to get my bearings and go from there. To be mindful of scale I scanned the photo down to 1/16 scale and the roughed in bust is spot on with a little room to spare here and there for more material.

 

[garyjd]

More photos showning 3/4, side, and back view.~Gary

 

[garyjd]

Side

 

[garyjd]

I will get around to more work shortly, my marine is still slowly coming along and pics of him are coming soon, I meant to get some up over the weekend but that did'nt happen. Anyway this bust is going to be a fun exercise.~Gary


I'll be back... I know that was bad.

 

[John Long]

Gary, I'm guessing that this is some manifestation of Sculpy. At what point do you bake? Will you make a basic skull and add detail to this, or add detail as it is?

 

[garyjd]

John, I just baked what you see here. I will now go in and clean it up here and there where bitis and pieces are missing and then bake again. I will then go in and sand paper as much of the shape as possible, to give the surface a bit more "tooth" so additional pieces/layers will grip better. For the head I will carve out some sockets and better define the planes of his face to help me with his likeness. I have found I'm doing a bit more carving these days in addition to 'pushing clay" as it's great to have a solid foundation to work on versus a layer after layer of soft clay.

Here's what I plan to do.

1. Refine the overall shape.
2. Prepare the surface with sandpaper.
3. Start laying in the facial features.
4. Also ensure the neck,shoulders,chest and back are all correct anatomically.

I hope to be at this stage by the weekend.~Gary

 

[Anders Heintz]

Gary,

I am looking forward to this with great enthusiasm!! It will be great to see you create a face from a picture that we all have seen. Maybe you should compile it all into a SBS article once its all said and done? It would be great reference for us newbie sculpters.

Btw. Sent the pictures out for you today

 

[JCOX]

Originally posted by garyjd@Dec 8 2003, 12:56 PM
John, I just baked what you see here...

~Gary

Gary,

Great start. I'm anxiously awaiting each post you do on this - what a great learning experience it will be!

Question:

How did you get the pre-baked sculpey so smooth before baking? Do you use a solvent of some sort or just smooth it with a tool/fingers?

Forgive me if you've already answered this before (I can be slow)...

-jim cox

(Can't wait to see the updated marine pics as well!)

 

[LCoote]

Nice start Gary,

 

[garyjd]

Jim, Thanks, no problem. The sculpey here was mainly smoothed with my fingers along with Sculpey Diluent. This is a product that comes in a small plastic bottle. It's a liquid that you add to Sculpey to re-avtivate it so to speak in order to make it soft again. A little bit on a finger can go a long way, use it sparingly as too much will dilute an area too much.

This is going to be a neat little project, and hopefully I'll be able to cover it in just enough detail to maybe at least give those wanting to try it at least one approach they can try. I wish I would have taken a few pics of the initial applications of sculpey, but it was really not more than a few layers of material shaped to block in the head, neck, chest, shoulders, and back.

I hope to at least cover all of the steps in pics I talked about above before getting into the "meat" of the project.~Gary

 

[quang]

Gary,

About the brooch. It's NOT a concha as I first thought but a circled star (in silver I presume) with some tin cones added to the lower half. See enlargement here:

http://www.creafigs.com/datas/users/1-little-hand.jpg

Also note how it's used to hold the scarf in place. WHEW!

Q.

 

[JCOX]

Originally posted by garyjd@Dec 9 2003, 01:03 AM
The sculpey here was mainly smoothed with my fingers along with Sculpey Diluent. This is a product that comes in a small plastic bottle. It's a liquid that you add to Sculpey to re-avtivate it so to speak in order to make it soft again. A little bit on a finger can go a long way, use it sparingly as too much will dilute an area too much.

~Gary

Thanks Gary. I will give it a try.

-jim cox