A drummer of the First Dublin Volunteers, a specially commissioned figure(as always click to embiggen)
I'd like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous New Year.
I haven't found the time to blog of late, but we've been having a wonderful time. I was working over Christmas which was quite busy, but I had a few days off afterwards which were a welcome opportunity to spend some time with Mrs Kinch.
My handed over my drummer figure yesterday, the recipient was gratifyingly pleased with the results.
Mrs Kinch's cousin Basil, newly on the strength(as always click to embiggen)
In other news, Mrs Kinch's cousin Basil will be living in our spare room for a while. He's a good sort and we share a taste in movies.
Cutting a dash in profile
(as always click to embiggen)
(as always click to embiggen)
This was probably the most challenging piece of painting I've ever done. The white uniform was very tricky. I must thank Stokes for his assistance, though I discovered that his technique using black lining and a grey basecoat doesn't really work on such a large figure. However, I found his advice about using a tan undercoat covered by successive very thin coats of white, to be very effective. The trick I think with larger figures is to forget about highlighting, as the figure is so large that natural light does the work for you.
A rear view(as always click to embiggen)
Painting the lace and the chevrons on the arms in red were particularly difficult as mistakes were very hard to cover up. I painted the drum separately and then pinned it to the rest of the figure.
In the meantime, my pledge to make a donation on each of the Twelve Days of the Christmas is going well, though I'm beginning to run out of charities. Any suggestions can be left in the comments below.
25th December - Temple Street Children's Hospital
26th December - The Capuchin Day Centre
27th December - The Salvation Army
28th December - Kathryn Casey Memorial Fund
29th December - Jack Vasel Memorial Fund
30th December - Peter McFerry Trust
31st December - Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
1st January - Our Lady's Hospice, Harold's Cross
Fantastic paint job Conrad. Happy New Year.
ReplyDeleteSplendid figure sir & Happy New Year to you and yours.
ReplyDeleteAlan
Hi CK,
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year to you and Mrs K and the assorted felines etc!
Lovely job on the figure old chap - very inspiring as in a 'I would love to have a go at something similar' kind of a way!
All the best,
DC
Very impressive paint job , loks great!.
ReplyDeleteJobs a good'un! Very nice... Basil however looks to be a rum cove....
ReplyDeletePS. Local equivalent of Help for hero's/British legion???
Splendid work!
ReplyDeleteGood job done, Conrad - I like the facial expression very much - sort of quizzical!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year.
Chris
http://notjustoldschool.blogspot.com/
A superb little drummer. Well done!
ReplyDeleteAt the risk of sound creaky again, when I was a young officer cadet I was on the reception committee for the AWI re-enactors who visited for the bi-centennial, stopping at St. Jean on their way to attack Quebec just like their predecessors if you discount the buses. Since I painted miniatures (mostly 20/25mm of course) I was tasked with painting a Rose 54mm figure for each of several dignitaries. One of them caught me at work in the museum workshop and after complimenting gave me advice to increase the shading and highlighting because they were "only 54mm tall" !! Luckily he seemed immensely pleased a day or 2 later to find out one of the figures was for him!
I wish you and yours the very best of years to come.
-Ross
ps nice mustache.
Rodger, Tradgardmastre, DC, Mosstrooper, Thomas
ReplyDeleteThank you very much. Not something I will be doing a lot of as it is extremely time consuming, but I was very happy with the result. I also owe the recipient debts that I can never repay and it was wonderful to see that he liked it.
Steve - He is a bit rum, I must say, I can't quite put my finger on it...
I hadn't thought of the British Legion/Poppy Appeal. Well that's one problem solved.
Chris - It is, though it must be said that the figure is actually a portrait of a named individual. I find that quite touching in a strange way, the man in question was an 18th century domestic who appeared in a painting. And now he sits in miniature in someones cabinet. What a strange world it is.
Ross - I've been drummed into that sort of a duty as well. Basil's moustache has indeed been the source of some comment.
A very nice looking figures but an even better tache!!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!!
Happy New Year to you, Mrs. Kinch, the dashing Basil and assortered felines. You've done a masterful job on that figure, old chap. Lovely work and knowing the backstory of the fellow in that painting makes it quite wonderful and almost poignant. I admire the care you took on the white coat but I also like the shading on the red turnbacks. Lovely.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year, Conrad! The figure looks great. Very nicely done. However, your Basil needs a swagger stick and a monocle to go with that mustache, I think, and maybe a canary yellow waistcoat to boot.
ReplyDeleteBest Regards,
Stokes
Good man yerself, Brother Kinch, for yer charitable ways. If you're still looking for a good cause to donate to, may I offer CALL as a candidate. They offer both practical and emotional support for those of us living with or caring for someone living with cancer and other life-limiting illnesses.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.canceraid.co.uk/
I'm not normally one to shill for any charity, no matter how good the cause, but this time it's personal. Their moral support, way above and beyond the call, has helped me get through a horrible holiday period.
So as a distant relative (and possible descendant) of your beautiful drummer figure (Da Vesuvius was an Enniskillen Johnston), I commend them to your good graces, and may I offer the very best wishes for you and yours for 2012.
Dr Vesuvius