PERSPECTIVES IN MINIATURE: Young Miniatures

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, 3 March 2009

Young Miniatures - US Marine, Iwo Jima 1945

Labels: Young Miniatures - US Marine Iwo Jima 1945 Posted by CALVIN TAN at 21:37

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Just when I thought that I could take things a little slower after the school semester is approaching its end, I found myself taking on another project to prepare a module syllabus for one of the schools I'm currently teaching.
Although the deadline for that job is rather tight, I still managed to squeeze some time off early last week to start painting Young Miniature's latest bust offering of a rugged study of a Leatherneck Marine at Iwo Jima.

Clean-up was extremely easy(courtesy of the heat gun nonetheless). I did however decided to omit the kit's plinth in lieu of a 7mm brass rod instead as it looked more compatible with the wooden base.

I will not delve more into the painting of the bust up to this point as I'm preparing that material for a new section on modelling tutorials for this blog. Nontheless I do hope you'll enjoy the pictures of the work done so far.

cheers,

Calvin

8 comments:

Andreas said...: GREAT,

Have you redone the head or is this only Primer?Beautiful Bust!

Andreas; 3 March 2009 at 23:59
CALVIN TAN said...: Hi Andreas,

the original sculpting for the head was left undisturbed and what you see is actually an opaque layer of Gunze Sanyo Resin Primer. I do agree with you that this truly is a beautiful bust and I anxiously look forward to a rewarding experience painting it.

Calvin; 4 March 2009 at 23:43
Anonymous said...: Hi Calvin

Very nice progress indeed, the face is beautifully painted

Allan; 5 March 2009 at 16:48
Andreas said...: I'm always amazed when I see different interpretations of youngs busts.They all look different but great in their way!
btw in which camouflage schemes can I paint the smock of the Ardennes LAH NCO?I know plane tree and oak leaf.Is Palm tree also possible?

regards from Germany

Andreas; 5 March 2009 at 21:38
Anonymous said...: Once again first class work ! I was alwas told to use white or grey primer never black ! Looking at your work I may try black
Joel; 7 March 2009 at 15:35
Anonymous said...: Andreas no you cant use palm tree ,as palm tree was early war and the Type I smock .The alpine Figure is Type II smock (Pockets at the Bottom and camo loops ); 7 March 2009 at 15:43
Andreas said...: thanks :-) then it will be plane tree

regards

Andreas; 7 March 2009 at 16:51
Anonymous said...: Hi Calvin,

Are you Y S Tan? I'm "Wa"..I came to Singapore in 2001 and you took me walked around the model shops! Just managed to find your site again and glad to see that you are working good in the miniature arts.

*Wa* from HK; 21 March 2009 at 20:59