The WORLD’S FINEST: Superman and Batman (after Drew Struzan). The poses of these 1/6th scale sculptures were inspired by paintings by Drew Struzan, but I had latitude to style them however I wanted, opting for a modernized Golden Age look.
They were sculpted with Super Sculpey, Sculpey Firm, and Apoxie over aluminum armatures.
I made a short making-of video which you can watch here.
Digital sculpture of my childhood superhero, Dragon-Man, sculpted with Nomad Sculpt for the iPad Pro.
I used to make this guy out of plasticine, now I’m making him out of ones and zeroes.
My friend Dave Marshall did a fan comic based on the long-running BBC Sci-Fi series DOCTOR WHO in which an aging Doctor (modeled on Helen Mirren) ultimately regenerates into a new Doctor (modeled on Sam Cooke). In his early drawings, Dave hadn’t settled on those specific likenesses, and I used those earlier versions as my template for these 3D versions. In a nod to Cooke, I did make the Doctor’s trademark sonic screwdriver resemble a 1960s-style pencil microphone (and like his predecessor Doctor’s mechanical right hand, it’s made of brass, like the workings of a clock).
The Doctors are 1/10th scale, sculpted in Super Sculpey and Apoxie over aluminum armatures. The TARDIS is made with cut sheet styrene and has working lights.
The comic book incarnation of BATMAN ‘89, as designed by Joe Quinones (from the comic book drawn by Quinones and written by Sam Hamm, screenwriter of the 1989 Tim Burton film) which I digitally sculpted with Nomad Sculpt for the iPad Pro.
Taking advantage of the layering abilities of a digital sculpture, I was also able to sculpt a complete Bruce Wayne face under the mask. The comic book version does not, by design, strictly resemble actor Michael Keaton, who played him in the film, but is instantly recognizable as BRUCE WAYNE.
Prior to this, I’d also sculpted a version that hewed more closely to the movie:
“Enter Freely, Go safely, And leave something of the happiness you bring.”
Count Dracula as described in Bram Stoker’s novel, seen here as he welcomes poor unsuspecting Jonathan Harker to his castle. Digitally sculpted in Nomad Sculpt for the iPad Pro.
Mike Mignola’s HELLBOY, digitally sculpted on the iPad Pro with Nomad Sculpt.
I’m having a lot of fun digitally sculpting and learning a lot as I go. I’m self-taught, so I don’t know if I’m doing things the ”right” way, or even if some of these pieces will be printable with a 3D printer, but right now I’m having a blast and enjoying how these are coming out.
Plus I like sitting on the couch and sculpting without having to unpack or clean up any tools. That said, I feel like working this way is whetting my appetite and giving me ideas for my next traditionally sculpted project.
DC Comics’ World War II hero SGT. ROCK, created by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert in OUR ARMY AT WAR #83 (1959). This piece is based on a drawing of Rock by Kubert.
This minibust was sculpted with Sculpey Firm, Apoxie, and Cosclay, and is about 7″ tall.
Cartoonist Darwyn Cooke adapted four of Richard Stark’s violent PARKER books (THE HUNTER, THE OUTFIT, THE SCORE and SLAYGROUND, all published by IDW) into graphic novels before Cooke’s untimely death in 2016. Sad that we’d never get any more of the adaptations, I started reading the original novels, which I’ve been enjoying. I’ve sculpted Cooke’s version of Parker before, but only as he appeared in the first book THE HUNTER, after which Parker had extensive plastic surgery because he’d run afoul of he underworld. Cooke’s second version of Parker is less conventionally handsome, more chiseled, and just meaner looking, and I wanted to sculpt that version, too.
This 1/6th scale minibust is about 3” high, sculpted in Sculpey Firm over an aluminum wire and foil armature, and accented with black cel vinyl.
Cooke PARKER fans: can you tell which specific panel from which Cooke adaptation this was based on?
I was honored to have photos of this mini-bust of Goliath included in the WE LIVE AGAIN: A Gargoyles Zine and I’m auctioning this original, hand-made piece to help the zine’s goal of supporting the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
The winning bidder will receive one original mini-bust of GOLIATH (approximately 5″ tall), hand-painted, on its own ready-to-display stand.
I’m going to start the bidding at $150. Here’s how it will work:
THIS WEEKEND ONLY! TELL EVERYONE, TELL THE WORLD (Actually, USA only, sorry)!
That’s it! Bid early, bid often, it’s all for a great cause!
UPDATE: Bidding is now closed. We have a winner and raised $300 for the ACLU! Thanks, all!
I saw GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS and came home and made some Godzillas.
This was sculpted in, appropriately enough, Monster Clay, molded with Smooth-On Equinox 40 silicone mold rubber (a kind of miracle product I can’t believe works as well as it does), cast with Smooth-On Smooth Cast 57D and So Strong resin tints, and finished with acrylic paint.
Big G was sculpted from memory and is kind of a hybrid between various classic Japanese Toho Studios Gojis and the American Legendary Pictures version. He’s got the compact muzzle, bulkiness and gills of the American version, with the original Japanese detailing of the brows and top of the head, and the often-forgotten tiny, cat-like ears.
I had a few of these at HeroesCon 2019, and I’ll have more available very soon.
JFsculpts 