GOD IS A WOMAN...

We talk a lot about the figures produced by commercial brands, but we do not always include the figures made by artists or artisans (which is not the same thing)... As a worker in the artistic field and a drawer, I value very much these sculptural pieces... And since I got back into the habit of collecting animal figures, sculptural pieces were somewhat unattainable and secondary to me (I still had many commercial figures on my wish list).

I seem to remember the first such piece I bought was a Harriet Knibbs whitetail wildebeest through eBay.

Years later I started doing business with Jose Miguel (Signatustudio) and acquired several pieces from Manuel (Nepaim Hesev. Divartsity). Then other models from Joan Milelire (Bestiari Models). The three Spanish compatriots.

I also bought then the two hyenas of Beauty of The Beasts.

At the time I began to investigate people who made figures more anonymously. There I ordered two more hyenas from Gredinia and a small piece from Anne-Joke.

I bought a customization from Whitelighting Wolf. Also Kristin made a piece for me (obviously another hyena) in a trade.

A bunch of pieces from Stijn MiniNature (I'm waiting for him to decide to release hyenas...).

In the meantime I spontaneously acquired several figures: a mold from Orcamel Studio, 3 pieces of "prehistoric" mammals (who came from the USA if I remember correctly), a cave hyena from an Spanish artisan... ... ...

And an extensive collection of Kerapolin, this time traveling from Germany.

AND THEN I GOT TO DARINA. I found FAITH and met GOD... AND GOD TURNED OUT TO BE A WOMAN with an extraterrestrial gift to turn my ideas and images into WORKS OF ART.
Adding to this supernatural gift, she turned out to be a tremendously kind, caring and considerate person (something, let me tell you, that is NOT usual).

She has become my ARTIST (yes, in this case she is an artist in capital letters, not just a craftswoman) of REFERENCE. I am a subscriber to her continuous commissions and I have no intention of stopping this rhythm.
I already have 10 pieces in my possession and number 11 is in process...

I can't resist to share with you these 5 relics that arrived to me yesterday, in a long -and difficult- trip from Russia...

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* Sculptures of Dar deserves its own topic in this folder...

Oh, they are truly lovely, I'm especially impressed by the flamingo with those long slim legs and graceful neck - so many figures of long-legged birds look out of proportion for the sake of strength and stability, but this one's every bit as slimline and elegant as the real thing!

Thank you George, I assure you that the image does not do justice to the reality... Live and in your hands, they don't look like they were made by a human ...

I am happy of seeing Darina works here. I know her superb works from a few social media groups but I believe she was never introduced to our community.
Her talent is phenomenal, I wished she could join our forum. On social media I always see her works promoted by her custommers, not directly by herself.

That are artworks.

Roger, She has a profile on Instagram where you can see many of her pieces.
But it is true that sometimes her pieces are more promoted by her clients than by her, the truth is that she is a very simple and humble person in terms of her talent, I don't think she likes to show off (even I though she is one of the most talented artists I know in this field)

Do you have the link for Instagram?

HOLY HAMSTER they are gorgeous

WOW

Wow! Wonderful models!

Oh yes!! Yes, thank you so much for reminding me of her name!!
I remember another forum member showing me two absolutely incredible canines made by her, but then when  tried to find the old message again, unfortunately it seemed to have vanished! But now thanks to you I have found her name again, she is honestly one of the most amazing artists in this field and I completely agree with everything you say! How wonderful to know that she's also a kind person too!

I am absolutely amazed by these models she has done for you, and I can only imagine how outstanding they must look in real life! So much detail, so realistic- it is hard to believe they were made with a human hand! And I have just looked at her Instagram too- her dogs are just out of this world! I will definitely be using her for inspiration from now on, so much talent! And I would be so honoured to own one of her beautiful sculptures, although I can imagine that the price would probably match such high quality work!
Thank you so much for reminding me of her name- and  how wonderful to have these models by her!

Kikimalou wrote:

Do you have the link for Instagram?

sculptures_of_dar

Bonnie wrote:

Oh yes!! Yes, thank you so much for reminding me of her name!!
I remember another forum member showing me two absolutely incredible canines made by her, but then when  tried to find the old message again, unfortunately it seemed to have vanished! But now thanks to you I have found her name again, she is honestly one of the most amazing artists in this field and I completely agree with everything you say! How wonderful to know that she's also a kind person too!

I am absolutely amazed by these models she has done for you, and I can only imagine how outstanding they must look in real life! So much detail, so realistic- it is hard to believe they were made with a human hand! And I have just looked at her Instagram too- her dogs are just out of this world! I will definitely be using her for inspiration from now on, so much talent! And I would be so honoured to own one of her beautiful sculptures, although I can imagine that the price would probably match such high quality work!
Thank you so much for reminding me of her name- and  how wonderful to have these models by her!

She gives soul to the figures... it is very difficult to get what the client asks for and also to provide the replica with emotionality (each figure has its history, each animal has a previously described personality and she channels it sculpturally). I think that's what makes her so unique, giving feeling to the impeccable technique!

Wow! Those look absolutely amazing!

Marvellous models made by an explendid artist.

The two hyenas are true works of art. Thanks for sharing

I just checked her IG, and wow those are some spectacular sculpts.
How does she do commissions/sales? Like are all of her models just one off sculpts? Or does she do limited runs of resin casts? And what are her rates?

Stripedhyena wrote:

Kikimalou wrote:

Do you have the link for Instagram?

sculptures_of_dar

Thank you Ricardo, here work is indeed absolutely handsome 

Stripedhyena wrote:

Bonnie wrote:

Oh yes!! Yes, thank you so much for reminding me of her name!!
I remember another forum member showing me two absolutely incredible canines made by her, but then when  tried to find the old message again, unfortunately it seemed to have vanished! But now thanks to you I have found her name again, she is honestly one of the most amazing artists in this field and I completely agree with everything you say! How wonderful to know that she's also a kind person too!

I am absolutely amazed by these models she has done for you, and I can only imagine how outstanding they must look in real life! So much detail, so realistic- it is hard to believe they were made with a human hand! And I have just looked at her Instagram too- her dogs are just out of this world! I will definitely be using her for inspiration from now on, so much talent! And I would be so honoured to own one of her beautiful sculptures, although I can imagine that the price would probably match such high quality work!
Thank you so much for reminding me of her name- and  how wonderful to have these models by her!

She gives soul to the figures... it is very difficult to get what the client asks for and also to provide the replica with emotionality (each figure has its history, each animal has a previously described personality and she channels it sculpturally). I think that's what makes her so unique, giving feeling to the impeccable technique!

This is so true!

Oh, I love Darina's sculptures too! I follow her on Instagram, I'm especially found of her dog models, so inspiring! And birds and hyenas are excellent too. In fact, all of her works are!

I wish she would consider casting at least some of them in resin. I think it's a pity to sell only OOAK models. That way she can't keep copies for herself and only a small number of people can enjoy holding her works in their hands.

Ana wrote:

Oh, I love Darina's sculptures too! I follow her on Instagram, I'm especially found of her dog models, so inspiring! And birds and hyenas are excellent too. In fact, all of her works are!

I wish she would consider casting at least some of them in resin. I think it's a pity to sell only OOAK models. That way she can't keep copies for herself and only a small number of people can enjoy holding her works in their hands.

The truth is that the fact that their models are unique makes them more special in a way.
The extraordinary thing about her is that, in addition to her undeniable talent, she is a very human and friendly person. It is wonderful to find so much talent within such simplicity!

PS: Ana, regarding the fact that more people can have it in their hands... you should take it into account too ... I think there are more collectors who would like to have a copy of your bongo, for example, of the number of copies offered

Stripedhyena wrote:

Ana wrote:

Oh, I love Darina's sculptures too! I follow her on Instagram, I'm especially found of her dog models, so inspiring! And birds and hyenas are excellent too. In fact, all of her works are!

I wish she would consider casting at least some of them in resin. I think it's a pity to sell only OOAK models. That way she can't keep copies for herself and only a small number of people can enjoy holding her works in their hands.

The truth is that the fact that their models are unique makes them more special in a way.
The extraordinary thing about her is that, in addition to her undeniable talent, she is a very human and friendly person. It is wonderful to find so much talent within such simplicity!

PS: Ana, regarding the fact that more people can have it in their hands... you should take it into account too ... I think there are more collectors who would like to have a copy of your bongo, for example, of the number of copies offered

The bongo was available as a resin edition, it wasn't an OOAK model. At the time when the edition was open, it was fairly easy to get it, I believe
After 12 years it's harder to find but I can't do much about it. Making a new bongo is not really an option for me at the moment.

For sure having a sculpture that is only one of a kind feels special and unique  

However, having a resin copy that's one of say 50 also feels quite special. You can compare that to toy producers who make tens of thousands of copies per design to see how small is an edition of 50. And you can share the joy with others who can appreciate the same sculpt too. Also, in some cases, you can see a number of color versions, but that is probably the biggest advantage for models of domestic species like horses or dogs.

Ana wrote:

Stripedhyena wrote:

Ana wrote:

Oh, I love Darina's sculptures too! I follow her on Instagram, I'm especially found of her dog models, so inspiring! And birds and hyenas are excellent too. In fact, all of her works are!

I wish she would consider casting at least some of them in resin. I think it's a pity to sell only OOAK models. That way she can't keep copies for herself and only a small number of people can enjoy holding her works in their hands.

The truth is that the fact that their models are unique makes them more special in a way.
The extraordinary thing about her is that, in addition to her undeniable talent, she is a very human and friendly person. It is wonderful to find so much talent within such simplicity!

PS: Ana, regarding the fact that more people can have it in their hands... you should take it into account too ... I think there are more collectors who would like to have a copy of your bongo, for example, of the number of copies offered

The bongo was available as a resin edition, it wasn't an OOAK model. At the time when the edition was open, it was fairly easy to get it, I believe
After 12 years it's harder to find but I can't do much about it. Making a new bongo is not really an option for me at the moment.

For sure having a sculpture that is only one of a kind feels special and unique  

However, having a resin copy that's one of say 50 also feels quite special. You can compare that to toy producers who make tens of thousands of copies per design to see how small is an edition of 50. And you can share the joy with others who can appreciate the same sculpt too. Also, in some cases, you can see a number of color versions, but that is probably the biggest advantage for models of domestic species like horses or dogs.

I understand what you say, of course! Although the truth is that there are several aspects that are important to take into account and that, perhaps it is not for me to comment, the market of the figures made by artists and artisans can be somewhat complicated in terms of communication, prices, times, nationalities and locations... it is a big garden and sometimes it can be a maze with its dark areas and dead ends... But well, this would be another topic that has nothing to do with the post itself.

PS: I'll be looking forward to hunt one of your bongos   , 12 years ago unfortunately for my collection (and fortunately for my pocket) was not in the wave of artist figures.

Yes, I agree it can be quite a maze. With many good endings but not all of them. I didn't intend to hijack the topic, sorry. Darina's works are absolutely gorgeous, that is what matters here!

I looked at your hyenas again, I just love them An especially cool detail is how one of them is dirty with blood, such a realistic touch. You must have so many hyenas now, do you have a topic dedicated to them?

Yes! The blood is a very emotional detail, something more artistic than commercial. The truth is that each figure has a story and is posed with an individual personality (something that comes up mostly when people order a dog, a cat or a horse, I think).

Hyenas are my weakness, I have hundreds but I don't have an open theme here and I don't have all the pieces photographed either... Someday I must have to do it!

excellent sculpturing and talent ,all your figures from the artist are special, and yes I can relate to the feelings of having your own one of a kind miniature figures ! Hope to get some of her works in my collection too !!

Amazing!! I think I have seen her work too, just incredible!! Thank you for showing!!