Bjarki's Projects

Hi all,

I don't get around to sculpting very often, and I'm not very good at working on one thing at a time or finishing things, so I thought I'd put pictures of all of the things I've started in the same topic.

I started this pair a few years ago not long after first posting my brown bear here and Philter recommended I try using Sculpey for future projects.  I thought the first model I should to try to make with this more practical material ought to be one of the animals I'd most like to see one of the major brands make: a sloth bear.  When I did a Google image search for sloth bears, I found an incredible picture of a mother bear defending her cubs from a tiger.  I thought that would be fun to try to sculpt.  I abandoned the project for a while to work on the longhorn cattle, and working on those made me think that maybe I ought to try to just work on sculptures of animals in more static poses until I'd had a bit more practice.  I found the positioning of the tiger and the bear bit of a challenge.  But here's what I've got so far:

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I'm a bit nervous about working on the tiger's face.  I feel like that's going to be quite a challenge for me.  But I'm looking forward to eventually finishing it and having an excuse to try Kosta's painting tutorial.  I've started working on them again, and hope to have pictures eventually.

And here's a cape buffalo I started working on a few months ago:

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The dark color of that sculpting wax makes it hard to photograph.  I'm sorry about that.  Also, the buffalo's head looks a good bit larger in this picture than it appears in person.

All of these animals are scaled at roughly 1/32.

Anyway, any advice you've got is very much appreciated!

I am really impressed by your project with the tiger...go ahead, please!!!

Good buffalo too. You have to continue and finish your project they are really very promising.

They are beautyful ! You are very, very talented

Especially I am so totally in love with that buffalo

Now that you have shown them, you must promise to finish them for us to see

The picture you're showing is really impressive and it is a huge challenge! It makes me also very curious to see how do you succeed with your work! A 1:32 buffalo is a rarity and you did a nice work!

Very nice :)

Fantastic sculptures bjarki12

You know perfectly how to begin a job It's time to learn how to finish please Don't waste your talent and go ahead

Wow, if you makes copies of fight between these two animals, say me It's fantastic

Well, this is a bit of a tease! Please finish as soon as possible as I am very keen to see the bear/tiger diorama. It looks very promising. Thanks also for sharing the buffalo - I find it fascinating to see work in wax.

I like what I see so far. How is working in wax? I've never used it.

Thanks everyone for your encouragement! I really appreciate it! I'm working on the sloth bear these days. I get a little frustrated twisting the wires to make the claws. It's a little slow going, but I'll try to have more pictures soon.

Mgarat wrote:

I am really impressed by your project with the tiger...go ahead, please!!!

Thanks so much, Mgarat! Any cat-related compliment coming from you means a lot!

SUSANNE wrote:

Now that you have shown them, you must promise to finish them for us to see.

Kikimalou wrote:

It's time to learn how to finish please

I'll be sure to get them finished. I'm a little slow, but it's very motivating to read your replies. Thanks!

Florian wrote:

Wow, if you makes copies of fight between these two animals, say me

Thanks, Florian! I'm hoping to learn a bit more about making copies. I've never done it before, so I'll be interested to learn how.

Geospiza Fortis wrote:

How is working in wax?

I really like the feel of the wax. It holds detail really nicely. The best thing about it is that it's less likely to smudge than the Sculpey. The problem, though, is that you can't really get it to harden into a toy-like model. I'm hoping to find out more about casting so that maybe my buffalo can eventually be more permanent.

Thanks again, everyone!

bjarki12 wrote:

I really like the feel of the wax.  It holds detail really nicely.  The best thing about it is that it's less likely to smudge than the Sculpey.  The problem, though, is that you can't really get it to harden into a toy-like model.  I'm hoping to find out more about casting so that maybe my buffalo can eventually be more permanent.

Thanks again, everyone!

Is wax exclusively subtractive, or is it malleable like sculpey?

Beautiful works! I love the fighting scene, how cool! And the buffalo is beautiful too. Congratulations!

I think after seeing your works I would like to try sculpting something in wax too :)

Superb musculature in the tiger! I'm impatient to see the final fight between Shere Khan and Baloo...! Congratulations!

Geospiza fortis wrote:

Is wax exclusively subtractive, or is it malleable like sculpey?

Sorry - I think I understand you better this time. I find it to be malleable kind of like sculpey, but not quite as soft (at least not as soft as the sculpey I'm using, but I haven't tried different types yet). I find that both additive and subtractive sculpting are much easier with the wax than they are with the sculpey I've used. With sculpey, if I add clay onto the model, it often won't stick very well without a lot of blending that often warps other parts of the model. When I subtract, the clay on the model tends to crack and sometimes even crumble. I've reworked parts of that sloth bear several times over now, only to find that the detail smudges quickly and the clay falls apart. (Incidentally, with the tiger, I've tried sculpting a few body parts at a time, then sticking the figure in the oven to harden them. Then I sculpt another part, cook it again, and move on to the next. I've found this pretty effective so far.) But I haven't had that trouble or anything like it with the wax.

Anna wrote:

Beautiful works! I love the fighting scene, how cool! And the buffalo is beautiful too. Congratulations! cheers

I think after seeing your works I would like to try sculpting something in wax too :)

Thanks very much, Anna! I'm looking forward to seeing your work in wax!

DavidP wrote:

Superb musculature in the tiger! I'm impatient to see the final fight between Shere Khan and Baloo...!

Thanks, David!
Haha - Maybe that's what I was thinking subconsciously, too. The Jungle Book was one of my favorite books when I was a kid. (Though I don't remember Baloo and Shere Khan ever fighting each other? It's been a while since I read it, though.)

DavidP wrote:

Superb musculature in the tiger! I'm impatient to see the final fight between Shere Khan and Baloo...! Congratulations!

I long to see this duo finished congratulations!
Balou;;; a great desire and posture is beautiful good luck

totally awsome!!!! i love their pose so much... congrats... and finish it