PERSPECTIVES IN MINIATURE

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

I developed this instructional DVD with Model Art magazine to help beginner armor and diorama modelers master the art of the 1/35 scale figure. In this video, I demonstrate easy-to-follow techniques for painting injection-molded plastics—from choosing the right brushes to the 'little tricks' I use for fine details. This is a complete showcase of my personal methods, and I’m confident it will help any modeler take their work to the next level. For your convenience, the DVD is available in both English and Japanese."

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.

Monday, 20 November 2023

Unternehmen Sonnenblume, Afrika Korps, Libya, 1941

Labels: Alpine Miniatures Posted by Calvin Tan at 10:10

Last weekend I was able to finally put on the crowning touches to this shelf queen that has been languishing since 2021. Despite the many false starts along the way, I finally made the decision to buckle down, rein in my expectations and get a move on this project. I admit that there are some parts that do need more refinement but I figured as long as the story is clear, I can always rework those problem areas in the future. For now, I an just contented that this idea has come to fruition.

Cheers,

Calvin

Tuesday, 14 November 2023

Unternehmen Sonnenblume, Afrika Korps, Libya, 1941

Labels: Alpine Miniatures Posted by Calvin Tan at 23:59

Slowly getting there....

Cheers,

Calvin

Monday, 13 November 2023

Unternehmen Sonnenblume, Afrika Korps, Libya, 1941

Labels: Alpine Miniatures Posted by Calvin Tan at 11:13

A little more progress over the week using some pastel colours for the highlights in the shadows.

Cheers,

Calvin

Monday, 6 November 2023

Unternehmen Sonnenblume, Afrika Korps, Libya, 1941

Labels: Alpine Miniatures Posted by Calvin Tan at 23:19

Resuming work on this piece for this November,

Cheers,

Calvin

Tuesday, 31 October 2023

Unterscharführer, SS Panzer Regiment 1, Operation Barbarossa, 1941

Labels: AK Interactive, Takahashi Modelling Posted by Calvin Tan at 12:48

Over the past weekend, I completed a quick paint job of an old metal figure from Takahashi Modelling. Overall it is a very nice sculpt and still holds up well by today's standards. My only gripe was that the hands are a tad chunky and I went about replacing them with ones from Royal Model. In the interest of time and convenience, I also used the decals from Passion Model for the insignias. Painting is done with AK Gen 3 acrylic paint. For the first time I tried out AK Interactive's new enamel liquid pigment for the groundwork and I am very delighted by the natural results. Finally, a special mention to Sven Finch for initiating this project and Chang Chung Fu for donating the figure.

Cheers,

Calvin

Saturday, 30 September 2023

SS-Obersturmbannführer Heinz von Westernhagen - LSSAH Normandy 1944

Labels: ARTO Posted by Calvin Tan at 22:46

Finished another one this September. This is one of the most detailed figurines I've ever painted. To fully appreciate the hard work of the sculptor Gwang-Yeol Lee, careful painting is necessary, but the results are worthwhile. The map was created from a low-resolution internet source, scaled in Photoshop, and printed on my Canon Selphy printer using special Selphy paper. I removed the tough paper backing from the map to get the right scale thickness, then I painted AK Ultra Matte Varnish on it to make the print out dull. I'm sure that this won't be my last ARTO figure.