PERSPECTIVES IN MINIATURE: US Marine, Fallujah, Iraq 2004

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. .

Sunday, 19 July 2009

US Marine, Fallujah, Iraq 2004

Labels: Young Miniatures - US Marine Fallujah Iraq 2004 Posted by CALVIN TAN at 21:41

Once again I'm very privileged to provide a sneak preview of Young Miniature's upcoming 1/9 scale bust. Not an easy assignment I must admit but nonetheless very rewarding due to the quality of the sculpt by Young Bok.
I did felt that the colors for the desert MARPAT pixel camouflage were quite elusive due to the varied lighting conditions from my photographic references. They seem to be either appear grayish or yellowish brown in tones. After some color trials, I decided to cut a tone somewhere in between the Grey and yellow/brown zones. For those keen folks out there, within the next coming weeks or so I'll try to provide an illustrated painting chart to assist those with similar projects.

Finally, thank you for your enthusiastic support and inquiring emails. Please understand that this is a particularly busy time for me and I do have another two more future Alpine Miniatures releases that need my immediate attention ( more of that to follow). Hence, your patience with me is greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Calvin

11 comments:

Andreas said...: what the f***** was my first thought
as I saw it O.O looks like a real soldier Calvin!!!

the dusty appearance supports this impression. Simply great!BRAVO!; 20 July 2009 at 00:23
danny said...: HOLA.
Precioso un lujo para la vista.
un saludo; 20 July 2009 at 04:43
Anonymous said...: Whoa! i thought i was looking at a real dude.

~ Basil; 20 July 2009 at 18:33
Chris Mrosko said...: Calvin
Fantastic painting! Wow! I am totally blown away!
Chris "Panzer" Mrosko; 21 July 2009 at 03:51
Panzer said...: Calvin
How does one join your friends list?
Mrosko; 21 July 2009 at 03:53
Anonymous said...: Simply stunning. Looks like its an amazing sculpt, but you've taken it to another level with the painting!!!

congratulations!

regards,
Michael.; 21 July 2009 at 05:52
Frank said...: Calvin: several of us US Marines saw this and we love it! You honor us.; 25 July 2009 at 07:40
Marcin Skrzypek Miniatures said...: Awesome work! WoW!; 31 July 2009 at 05:46
cialis said...: I, of course, a newcomer to this blog, but the author does not agree; 24 November 2010 at 18:20
Charlie said...: What were your color mixes on the MARPAT?; 21 November 2013 at 14:58
stevebrodie@virginmedia.com said...: Calvin,

Did you ever get round to creating that painting guide for the digital camo. Got the same bust coming and saw your excellent paint work, so why not ask from the best. Any help would be very, very grateful.

teve; 15 December 2015 at 01:05