PERSPECTIVES IN MINIATURE: Model Shows - Malaysian Miniature Hobby Show, Penang 2018

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. .

Wednesday, 11 July 2018

Model Shows - Malaysian Miniature Hobby Show, Penang 2018

Labels: Model Shows - Malaysia Miniature Hobby Show Penang 2018 Posted by Calvin Tan at 20:50

Hi All,

finally here is a photo journal of my recent trip to Penang for the annual Malaysia Miniature Hobby Show over the weekend of 30 June and 1 July 2018. It was a spectacular weekend with lots of makan, fellowship, shopping and a feast for the eyes to indulge in the outstanding scale models produced by talent hailing from both this region and abroad.

Departing from Singapore with Jaume.

Pick up from Penang International Airport by Ming and Jackie.

Happy hour with Adam and the Singapore Team.

At the dinner reception with Young and Pongsatorn.

Supper with Allan, Ju Won Adam Pongsatorn and Hyun Jin

Jaume's first encounter with the infamous durian together with the crew from Nutsplanet.

Outside the event venue Cititel Hotel in the heart of Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia.

Setting up the demo team and judges display with Allan on Friday night.

The collective display of works from the figure painting demo artists and the judges of the figure category.

Vikings by Allan Yong.

Kirill Kanaev's recent boxart for Young Miniatures being exhibited as part of Allan Yong's private collection. A visual treat for those attending the show that weekend.

Judges of the figure category Ju Won, Young Bok and Michael Lee.

101st Airborne at Bastonge 1944 by Michael Lee

Oikeus ' The Righteous ' by Jung Ju Won of Galapagos Miniatures.

Los tres amigos!

Friday night dinner with the Singapore team, Young Miniatures, Galapagos Miniatures and DEF Model....

.....followed by Durian tasting at Kimberly Road.

Inside the main ballroom with the club displays and trade stands.

Miniature Alliance from Singapore making their third appearance at the show.

Michael Sng of Machination Studio Pte. Ltd. from Singapore showcasing his creations for the first time at the show.

The competition ballroom.

The fun folks from Singapore hanging out.

Painting and diorama modelling techniques demonstration by maestro Ruben Gonzalez of AK Interactive.

Park Jun Wo and Kim Rea Hyun from Korea manning their club stand at the show.

Gold award for Jun Wo's superbly rendered fantasy piece titled Ma Ma buho.

Kim Rea Hyun with his silver award winning vignette.

A wonderful display of painted busts gained Hwang Meyong Ha a silver medal at the contest table. I must comment that this piece possesses one of the most outstanding palette of flesh tones I have seen.

Kim Yong Min's 1/10 scale Waffen SS Dispatch Rider from Young Miniatures was awarded a bronze in the figure category.

With Joe Lo of Hong Kong

I am totally loving Joe's Impressionistic style of painting . He is definitely pushing boundaries with the fine collection of work he has displayed at the show.

Johnny Chak of Hong Kong serving as one of the judges for the armour category.

Johnny's OOTB Tiger I tank crew from Tamiya. Gotta love the subtle touch he lends to his work.

Sunday lunch with the Singapore Team, Allan Yong, Young Bok and Ju Won.

Thor Intararangson of Thailand and Hyun Jin of DEF Model.

1/35 scale GI from Alpine Miniatures painted by Thor Intararangson. Magnificent painting!

I guess it is safe to say that Pongsatorn Kanthaboon is the undisputed master of painting the Tiger stripe camouflage (alongside Young Won of course).

Also from Pongsatorn is this atmospheric 1/35 scale DAK figure piece which fetched him a bronze medal at the contest tables. It was a risky gambit that paid off.

Another outstanding Thai modeler making her debut at the show was Panichakul Nakham with this 1/35 scale diorama titled Skycar Garage. Not only a young and beautiful lady, she also has some serious modelling skills to boot.

With Naoyuki Uehara and Kuniyuki Takeuchi of the Crossroads club from Japan.

Also hailing from Japan is Naoto Takada with his breathtaking Magach 6 with full interior which won him a Gold medal in the armor advanced class. I spent quite some time admiring the subtleties on this magnificent piece.

Jaume Ortiz's demonstrating his immaculate face painting technique towards the end of the show. The organizers did save the best for the last!

A small selection of Jaume's work on display at the show. The first time that his work is exhibited live at a model show in South East Asia.

Chris Leeman from down under serving as one of the judges for the armour category.

Chris Leeman's Russian Obj.199 Ramka BMPT - a stellar example of simple things done well.

Great turn out for Team Vietnam.

A bronze medal for Vietnam's Ryan Thuan's 1/10 scale Young Miniature's MG Gunner.

Gold award for Arnau Lazaro Azcarate of Spain.

Silver award for Anar Aytaliev in the figure category.

Dioramas on display by Giang Xuan Le of Paracel Miniatures

Silver medal for Richard Foenander of Malaysia with his USMC diorama of the battle of Peleliu.

Plunder of Santiago de Cuba by Surijanto Anton Santoso of Indonesia was conferred a bronze award.

Yoon Ki Yeol receiving his Gold award from Jaume for his outstanding paint work on this piece titled Pathfinder. Check out the painting on the checkered shirt..the mind boggles....

A gold medal for Darren Han from China with his subliminal painting of General Robert E. Lee for the box art of Alpine Miniatures.

Together with IMO currently two of the best armor modelers in Korea, Park Jung Woo and Kim Byeong Soo.

This magnificent Strumtiger earned Park Jung Woo a gold medal in the armor advanced category.

JS-2 also by Park Jung Woo

King Tiger by Kim Byeong Soo was awarded a silver in the armor advanced category.

Silver medal in the armor advanced category for Jemmy Ong from Singapore.

1/48 scale KV-1 earned Lee Chen Hui of Malaysia a Silver medal in the armour advanced category.

1/72 scale M1A2 by Iao Kit of Macau was awarded a silver medal in the Diorama category.

Gold winning entry from Dennis Wong of Singapore.

Matthiew Liew from Singapore receiving his Silver award for his 1/700 scale IJN destroyer Matsu.

Lee Won Hui's super amazing submerged U-Boat diorama.

Lee Won Hui sharing his technique on creating the epoxy resin sea for his submerged U-Boat diorama with the Singapore Team. He shares that the water was made from clear epoxy resin (available locally in Korea) with a single pour during the dry freezing cold of winter (among many other things)to prevent the plastic model from deforming from the exothermic reaction of the resin compound and hardener.

The Singaporean team with the Predator!

Together with Doi-San and the folks from Kuala Lumpur ,CK Loo and family, Allan Chew and Nicholas Ong.

KW Soon is probably the friendliest face you will find at the show. Looks rather haggard for a good reason as his wife was about to deliver any moment back home.

Finally the Best of Show winner went to Peter Lim of Singapore with his 1/144 scale diorama titled "Entrapment". Well done Peter!

Together with the man making this event possible happen, Choo Ming Huang of World Hobby Miniatures.

Sunday night dinner hosted by Allan Yong at the Kang Beef House. It has been three years running that I have dined there after the show ends.

A parting photo with long time friend Adam Wilder before I made my return to Singapore on Monday morning. It was a great time to finally catch up after these years mate.