PERSPECTIVES IN MINIATURE: Alpine Miniatures - 3rd SBCT, 2nd Infantry Division

ARTIST STATEMENT

In the words of Wilbur Smith "War is the game played by old men with the lives of the young". The pawn in this game is the combat soldier, represented by the miniature toy soldier; an insignificant being on the battlefield. Combat is the most intense moment of war, where life and death balances on a knife's edge. The results are terrifying and reveal the worst part of our human nature. Conversely, there are moments when it exudes the best of our human spirit. Most of the miniatures you see here are diligently researched from historical sources and handcrafted between scales of 1/35 to 1/16 (approx 50mm to 120mm). The intricate rendition of human expression and fine details not only demonstrates the level of craftsmanship but also serves as a reminder of the fragile nature of human life. I represent no political bias though my miniature creations. My aim is to portray humanity through the chronicles of military history and thus it is my pleasure that I present to you my weblog Perspectives in Miniature.

Calvin Tan

WWII GERMAN UNIFORMS - PERSONAL MIXES BY CALVIN TAN

In conjunction with AK Interactive, this exclusive Gen 3 acrylic paint set is specially composed with the essential colours that I use to render WWII German Uniforms. It contains 18 colours and a small pamphlet with my personal colour mixes. If you are keen to acquire all the colours on my palette to paint a field grey tunic, a splinter pattern zeltbahn, an oak-leaf pattern smock or the Kharkov anorak, look no further, this is the set for you to get started.

CALVIN TAN'S BASIC GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING

This instructional DVD published by Model Art magazine was primarily developed for the beginner armour and diorama modeller in mind. The video presentation will feature a variety of easy to master techniques used to render a 1/35 scale plastic injected moulded figure.Topics include proper paint application techniques, choice of brushes as well as some little tricks for painting fine detail. It is fundamentally a showcase of some of my methods and techniques for painting military figures and I am certain it will prove beneficial for any modeller who wishes to improve on figure painting. It is currently available in both Japanese and English.

CALVIN TAN'S GUIDE TO CONVERTING AND PAINTING FIGURES

In this third instalment, I will share my techniques and materials to customize and detail an inexpensive stock plastic figure. Watch as I take you through the steps on how I modify a pose, model details such as hands, belts and webbing and insignias. Learn about working effectively with epoxy putty as well as plastic styrene and paper. As a continuation from my first two DVDs, I will demonstrate how to model and paint a simple groundwork as well as an alternate approach using a monochromatic underpainting to render both a field grey tunic and the World War 2 German Splinter Camouflage pattern on a helmet cover. If you have enjoyed and benefitted from those previous titles, this edition will be a welcome addition to your journey in scale figure modelling – regardless of your current skill level. It is my sincere hope that this could inspire you to embark on your own creative adventure in this fantastic hobby. .

Tuesday, 22 July 2008

Alpine Miniatures - 3rd SBCT, 2nd Infantry Division

Labels: Alpine Miniatures - 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team 2nd Infantry Division Posted by CALVIN TAN at 00:12

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It has been more than a week since I've returned and it's back to work again on the workbench. First up on the pipeline of works are a pair of Stryker armored vehicle crews from Alpine Miniatures; sculpted by the boss man himself Taesung Harmms. As usual, the quality of the figures are predictably awesome which makes me wonder if Taesung himself is capable of any bad sculpts :P
That aside, judging by the amount of details on the figure, I can say that a lot of work was diligently invested in creating these two magnificent works of miniature art. It is definitely a very challenging piece to paint especially with the ACU camouflage scheme. I'm seeing pixels writing this whilst taking a short breather from the work bench! Here's the work done so far on the first figure after just three days of painting plus time's running out. Stay tune for the next update when my eyes start to looks like Guru Tugginmypudha and I need to blow of some steam from the painting.

Calvin

13 comments:

Anonymous said...: wow...so great!!!!!
I can't believe my eyes!!!
Super job~~!!!! :-); 22 July 2008 at 01:10
CALVIN TAN said...: Thanks Jin Kim,
Man! That was a really fast reply too! (no punt intended) :p

Calvin; 22 July 2008 at 01:13
Anonymous said...: Calvin, This looks AWESOME!!! Your digital camo is just perfect!

I can't wait to see more progress on these figures.

cheers,
michael kelly; 22 July 2008 at 07:55
Anonymous said...: WOW! Worth getting crossed eyed..haha

Sean; 22 July 2008 at 12:56
Anonymous said...: Amazing work as always!

/salute
Allan Moo; 22 July 2008 at 12:59
Anonymous said...: Hi Calvin,

Wow, that camo is simply stunning! You prove once again that you are the true master in camo painting.

Is this figure part of a two figure set or a single release?

Take care,

Gino.

P.S. Thanks for inspiring me for all those years.; 22 July 2008 at 16:28
Oliver Giersch said...: Am I the only one who can not click pictures to watch them in bigger size?; 22 July 2008 at 16:42
MarC! said...: WOWEEEE~ Finally~ some more new modern figs from Taesung~! Awesome! ACU is a pain in th ass isnt it? ;p; 22 July 2008 at 22:27
Dani Serrano said...: AAAAMAZING amigo!!!!!!!; 23 July 2008 at 18:41
Richard Knorrek said...: Goly Gee Whiz, that's the most awesome camo paintjob there has ever been, is and ever will be!; 24 July 2008 at 01:00
Richard Knorrek said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 24 July 2008 at 01:02
RD Claeps said...: Calvin,

Amazing job on the camo. Sounds like your real busy, but any chance you could post a short note on how you painted the pattern when you have some spare time?

thanks,

Roger Claeps; 24 July 2008 at 10:50
Rudi Richardson said...: Hey Calvin,

Wow! Great stuff!

I can only echo what the poster above said: please, please, please tell us how you're doing that digi-camo :-)

Rudi; 24 July 2008 at 17:24