The STS 2014 Animal figure of the year: Papo snow leopard

Dutch Bear wrote:

I kind of missed a bird catagory in the pre-rounds.
Maybe an idee for 2016?

Dutch Bear wrote:

I kind of missed a bird catagory in the pre-rounds.
Maybe an idee for 2016?

That would be great!

Jennypurr wrote:

I have a strange feeling I know who sculpted the T Rex.  Last year I stopped by a hobbyist's house and thought I saw the prototype for the REBOR T Rex.  But, I could be wrong.  I know the woman and her husband sculpt many dinosaurs but have no idea if they sell them to a toy company.

My least favorite of the finalists is the Mojo Arabian mare in foal.  She does appear to be in foal but she's too heavy-looking to be an Arabian.  Now, if they said it was a Morgan or Morab mare - that I could see.  This IS a pregnant Arabian mare:
http://www.equineresindirectory.com/showresin.asp?resinid=1985

The legs of the Arab mare had to be sculpted that way, mostly because of the technology and material it was produced from. Some companies use another kind of plastic or even a bitbigger scale which let them make legs proportionally thinner.  In this case it was a minimal required thickness.

I also would prefer to see more thin legged final version of this Arab mare, that's why I sculpted another version of this horse model, cast in resin. And resin version has about 30% thinner legs. It was possible thanks to different technology. (Resin version has also no fur texture which is not typical for Arabians but was required by the company, although in the winter Arabians also can have thick fur, if they are kept whole year outside in the colder climate, so, some may claim the Mojo Arabian is a one in winter fur )  

The model of Arabian mare from your link is also made in resin, and is a bigger scale, that two facts allowed for making the thin, typical Arabian legs. I think comparing it to PCV toy is a bit hard, these are two different "classes".

Ana wrote:

Jennypurr wrote:

I have a strange feeling I know who sculpted the T Rex.  Last year I stopped by a hobbyist's house and thought I saw the prototype for the REBOR T Rex.  But, I could be wrong.  I know the woman and her husband sculpt many dinosaurs but have no idea if they sell them to a toy company.

My least favorite of the finalists is the Mojo Arabian mare in foal.  She does appear to be in foal but she's too heavy-looking to be an Arabian.  Now, if they said it was a Morgan or Morab mare - that I could see.  This IS a pregnant Arabian mare:
http://www.equineresindirectory.com/showresin.asp?resinid=1985

The legs of the Arab mare had to be sculpted that way, mostly because of the technology and material it was produced from. Some companies use another kind of plastic or even a bitbigger scale which let them make legs proportionally thinner.  In this case it was a minimal required thickness.

I also would prefer to see more thin legged final version of this Arab mare, that's why I sculpted another version of this horse model, cast in resin. And resin version has about 30% thinner legs. It was possible thanks to different technology. (Resin version has also no fur texture which is not typical for Arabians but was required by the company, although in the winter Arabians also can have thick fur, if they are kept whole year outside in the colder climate, so, some may claim the Mojo Arabian is a one in winter fur )  

The model of Arabian mare from your link is also made in resin, and is a bigger scale, that two facts allowed for making the thin, typical Arabian legs. I think comparing it to PCV toy is a bit hard, these are two different "classes".

Very good, clear and right points :)

What is thinking this beautiful Leo ..?
...``I guess, I`m the wiiinneeerrr...yeahhh ``  

Thanks to all involved in compiling this poll, it's been a lot of fun! A little sad for me that there are no monkeys in the final, but I did vote for two non-primates in the initial rounds, and it looks like one of those is going to be named Figure of the Year!

I voted for the Kitan Club seal, which is a model form another category on its own, not even to compare with the Papo snowleopard, which is nice, but for me from another category, much less then the Kitan Club model, which is the case for most Japanese models when it come to quality i guess...

costicuba wrote:

What is thinking this beautiful Leo ..?
...``I guess, I`m the wiiinneeerrr...yeahhh ``  

SUSANNE wrote:

costicuba wrote:

What is thinking this beautiful Leo ..?
...``I guess, I`m the wiiinneeerrr...yeahhh ``  

WILLYBACOMAN wrote:

I voted for the Kitan Club seal, which is a model form another category on its own, not even to compare with the Papo snowleopard, which is nice, but for me from another category, much less then the Kitan Club model, which is the case for most Japanese models when it come to quality i guess...

Me too

LeeAnn wrote:

WILLYBACOMAN wrote:

I voted for the Kitan Club seal, which is a model form another category on its own, not even to compare with the Papo snowleopard, which is nice, but for me from another category, much less then the Kitan Club model, which is the case for most Japanese models when it come to quality i guess...

Me too

So am I

Well of course mon ami!

Kikimalou wrote:

cattlecollector wrote:

I'm a bit surprised that the snow leopard is winning. It seems like such an oddly proportioned model, and the face looks strange.

Actually, when you look at real snow leopard pics, you will find that the Papo have very good proportions.  

I agree . My take on the Papo Snow Leopard is that it is perfect in every way. I think it is about the most accurate and realistic extant animal figure I have ever seen by far. It s stunning.

Edited....

CONGRATULATIONS to Papo

And GREAT work , CollectA

Congrats to the Papo snow leopard and CollectA! Worthy winners

Congratulations to the Winners!

Congratulations to the winners!!

Congradulations!

Did the Papo Hippopotamus Cow win? That was my favorite of the year. I hope it did.

Seriously though, the Papo Snow Leopard is fantastic. And CollectA released so many spectacularly good models, it was kind of overwhelming.

SUSANNE wrote:

CONGRATULATIONS to Papo

And GREAT work , CollectA

Bravo !

Congrats to ALL.