Starry starry night

Vincent Van Gogh
28 mm

Starry, starry night
Flaming flowers that brightly blaze
Swirling clouds in violet haze
Reflect in Vincent's eyes of China blue
Colors changing hue
Morning fields of amber grain
Weathered faces lined in pain
Are soothed beneath the artist's loving hand

When I saw that Philip Hynes of Bears Head Miniatures had sculpted a Vincent van Gogh figure, I was so excited. Van Gogh is one of those artists who everybody has heard of, but who can never be overexposed or uninteresting. He was somebody who had a passion and a vast talent for art, but who was sadly so plagued by mental illness that he didn't last. Still, in his short life he painted over 900 canvases!

The particular painting I've depicted here is one of a series of four sunflower still lifes he did while working in Arles, France around 1888. The most famous of these hangs in the National Gallery in London, but there were three others. One is in a Belgian gallery and another was destroyed in Japan during WWII. This one has long been in a private collection and is not publicly displayed.

Something I was not aware of is that probably the only reason Van Gogh didn't slip into obscurity in death was that his brother's widow, Johanna Van Gogh-Bonger, inherited much of his work and devoted herself to raising its profile - and value - through an artful campaign of gallery showings and publicity. Without her, we'd never have enjoyed so many brilliant paintings, or a rather good episode of "Doctor Who".

"You should sign it 'For Amy' or something, just to confuse the art historians."

Sorcerous Spitfire

"Zeppelin Down"
Mixed scale

Beneath the starlight of the heavens
Unlikely heroes in the skies
Witches to attack, witches coming back...
As they appear on the horizon
The wind will whisper when the night witches come

1915, the Great War... England watches the skies in fear of bombing raids from the Kaiser's mighty Zeppelin force, striking with impunity from above the clouds. An ultra-secret arm of the War Office makes contact with a terrifying and reclusive group of mythical inhabitants of the British Isles. Unmoved by appeals to patriotism, they are however outraged  at the technological monstrosities raining destruction on "their" countryside, and respond accordingly...

I've toyed with the idea of using forced perspective in a miniature piece for ages, but never found a good subject.  The inspiration for this probably goes back to a similar composition I once saw on CoolMiniOrNot, of a 28mm Orc Stormboy launching off of an Epic vehicle "far" below. But this vignette ended up more like some things seen in traditional military modeling. And it has four different "scales" in it, which I'll admit was an ambitious first try.

While I'm hardly ashamed of my painting chops, I'll definitely admit my traditional modelmaking skills are pretty... rusty, in as much as I ever had them.  This project was a definite learning exercise: I had to completely redo the Zeppelin after a disastrous attempt to shade the underside, and getting the base to look remotely plausible took a lot of work.  On the upside, the clouds came out exactly the way I wanted them! And a near-monochrome palette with strong contrast really gave the witch a sinister look.

“A witch ought never to be frightened in the darkest forest, Granny Weatherwax had once told her, because she should be sure in her soul that the most terrifying thing in the forest was her.”

What's that WHEEKing sound?

Mysterious Wasteland Character (Guinea Pig Mimic)
28mm

Crimson and clover
over and over...

As you sift the rubble for anything useful to add to your gear or trade for bottlecaps in town, you hear a sound.  Scrambling for a hiding spot, you see an odd figure approaching. Masked and shrouded, it's humanoid enough at first glance, but its movement is an odd combination of shuffling and lurching, with legs hidden under a long overcoat.  And you think you hear squeaking...

This is certainly one of the strangest and most unique figures I've ever seen, let alone painted!  Annie Norman of Bad Squiddo Games has a well-known obsession with guinea pigs, and this figure is clearly the oddball product of that.  I love it.

Wolf Clan - the Red and the Black

Werewolf
28 mm

Hallelujah when the moon is up
We are werewolves, all we need is blood
Take a silver bullet for your shot
We're immortal, all we fear is god!

I'm very much a "f*** it, it's done" kind of painter, so this doesn't happen very often: after posting this figure here, I received some very helpful feedback, and took it back to the painting desk.

On the original post, my official Most Loyal Reader, Javi of Lazyminis, bluntly told me "your werewolf isn't bloody enough, and that severed hand looks like a cheap Halloween prop".  And he was, unsurprisingly, RIGHT. I couldn't un-see it.

Anyway, I think it looks much better now. I avoided real grand guignol with blood splattered from head to toe, but he's definitely torn something up.  And, it turns out the key to truly ghastly gore is mixing red and black...

"... I'd like to meet his tailor."

Thanks, Javi.

Menace of the Wolf Clan

Werewolf
28 mm

This figure kind of came together unexpectedly.  My FLGS, the Dragon, is having a "we're all stuck at home" Instagram painting contest!  The terms were pretty open, but I decided that I should support them since in the midst of all this they're still operating, making local home deliveries!  I ordered a couple of blisters of Nolzur's figures and this is the one I went with.  Done in four days, and I think the result is pretty satisfactory :D

The kilt is a passing version of my own family's clan tartan, actually only the second time I've painted tartan on a figure.

Animagus

Sirius Black/"Padfoot"
28mm scale

In the form of a huge black dog, Sirius Black follows his godson Harry to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, hoping to keep him safe from the most terrible dangers in the wizarding world...

I painted this figure at the request of my daughter, who is currently reading through the HP series at a shocking rate, totally immersed in the world of magic.  The figure is a pre-slotta Citadel wolf dating from the late 1980's.

Massacring Mendicant

Groo the Wanderer
25mm

I loved Groo comics when I was a kid.  I didn't own many but the public library, always mindful of of literary demand, stocked a decent supply. The combination of Sergio Aragonés' distinctive art, murderous slapstick, and ridiculous storylines about the adventures of a total idiot really hit the spot for adolescent me.

I have no idea where I got this figure.  It was presumably either a trade, or I found it in the miscellaneous figures box at my local FLGS (or as they tended then, "smelly nerd cave").  I don't remember ever seeing any of the other Dark Horse Miniatures figures in person... They're all worth a lot of money now, so I'm unlikely to try and expand my collection.

Rufferto, Groo, Chakaal, Sage, Minstrel.  This set would probably
cost a couple of hundred dollars... if anyone would sell it.

"Did you just call Groo a... MENDICANT?!"

Inspector Deck

Cyberspace Operator
15 mm

I move through the third world
my third eye's the guiding light
Invite the fight, we all die tonight

Whether they're carrying out a mission on the mean streets or moving through the world of the 'Net, an operator has to be a lightning-fast expert at fighting and hacking.  Their skills with a cyberspace deck and advanced weaponry are the difference between executing reconnaissance, theft, or delivery without a trace... and being just another dead console cowboy.

The Operator is a minor conversion of Duxis Drone Pilot from The Ion Age.

"Streets are like a jungle, can't let my cypher crumble..."

Barbarian Guardian of Eternia

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
28 mm

I'm the master of the world I have no fear of man or beast
Born inside the soul of the world
Riding hard breaking bone with steel and stone
Eternal might I was born to wield.

He-Man! Eternia's greatest hero! Is he a wandering tribesman who was imbued with the power of Castle Greyskull, or is he a noble prince who assumes a secret identity to defend his kingdom?  Only his most trusted companions know for sure...

"Go Herc! Go Herc!"
"Wrong cartoon, buddy, but I appreciate the vote of confidence!"

He-Man is a Quest Miniatures figure.  His base is a custom addition I made, inspired by collectible statuettes like this. I felt that, like Skeletor, his hunched pose needed a height boost so he wasn't crouching below the other characters. I think the result is suitably heroic!

I think this is easily the most ambitious 28mm painting project I've ever undertaken: a group of figures all painted to the highest standard I could manage.  It's been a real challenge, and a satisfying one to finally complete. And definitely a nostalgia trip...

Scruffy sleuth

Harry Salami, PI
15 mm

End of the Road
A Harry Salami Mystery
By Burt Hardcastle
Harry Salami's back, in a gripping new mystery from the author of  the bestselling "Cat's Game".  A millionaire land tycoon's wife has gone missing, and though the police have dropped the case, her sister believes she's no runaway bride.  It's up to Harry to find the truth, in a town where truth is scarcer than a stiff drink. Can he survive a web of intrigue that leads... all the way to the top?

"Harry Salami" is a name my kids came up with once, which I spun into a rambling mystery tale told on a dull car trip. Naturally I made him a noir detective, complete with jaded monologue and dubious business practices.  They still don't know why the name is so funny... :)

Harry is a lightly-converted Khurasan figure.

At an old factory outside of town, Harry hears a faint voice: "Is.. someone there? Help!"

Murphy's Law

RoboCop
15 mm

"My program will not allow me to act against an officer of this company".

Another Khurasan figure painted as a favour.  I tried for a subtle purple ambient light effect as requested, but it's hard to see.  Maybe the reflection of red/blue police lights?

"No sense of humour, huh Pinocchio?"

Big City Clown

The Joker
15mm

"It's not about the money... it's about sending a message."

I painted the "clown prince of crime" in Gotham city for an online friend... The figure is a Khurasan gangster.

"This town needs an enema!"

A Touch of Evil

Evil-Lyn
28 mm

Without warning you're here
Like magic you appear
I taste the fear

If Skeletor is the magical brawn among Eternia's villains, Evil-Lyn is the brains.  Though a lesser sorcerer in terms of raw power, she's nevertheless much more intelligent than Skeletor, and is more than willing to work on her own or even secretly against him to further her own self-interest.  Her staff allows her to channel her dark magic into powerful energy blasts.

Evil-Lyn is a Quest Miniatures figure.

"You know, hero, if we set aside our differences, we could get something we both want..."
"Uh... Pockets?"
"Pockets!"

Gaslands Power Trip

Gaslands electrical van
approx. 20mm scale

Danger, danger
High voltage
When we touch, when we kiss
Danger, danger
High voltage
When we touch, when we kiss, when we touch

All sorts of vehicles end up on the dangerous roads of Gaslands... this one seems to be a common utility van that's been armed with a potent but experimental Arc Lighting Projector! Stranger things have happened...

(Yes, it's absolutely based on the government van that Eleven flips over in "Stranger Things" S1).  Stuff I like about this project: its weapon is a Zoids part that has literally sat in my bitz box for 30 years :) Stuff I don't like so much: my terrible freehand lettering skills are on full display... :(

I also dug into my stash of printed materials and whipped up a basic gasoline storage tank terrain piece or objective marker (I actually have no idea if Gaslands uses these).