Sir Pembroke-Smythe, explorer and adventurer.

It's been a while since I've posted any work here, partly because I find facebook easier to use but also because I've just not been feeling very creative lately. A couple of half complete pieces have been sat glaring back at me which hasn't helped either. Normally when I need a creative kick start I cleanup my studio as a tidy space helps me work and in the process I often find odd unfinished work that sparks ideas, plus a trip to the scrapstore will provide exciting treasure for stimulating the creative juices.

I found this sculpey head which was originally going to be a tall thin mad scientist and decided to create a short fat British general with skinny legs. I think the idea may have come about as I'm reading the Flashman books. The wooden clock face courtesy of the scrapstore seemed an ideal base.

As I started to build the basic armature he slowly evolved into a skinny old figure in an oversized robotic suit. I always like making weird steampunk type suits and this one has been floating around my imagination for some time.

 

The basic shape is built up from thin corrugated card edged with copper wire. Once the shape is blocked out I take care applyong the masking tape as this provides the outer surface onto which I paint. Just like a suit of armour the suit is made up from individual segments as are the boots.

 

I use a lot of corrugated card as it is remarkably versatile, both flexible and strong. It's important to get the corrugated grooves running in the correct direction though. Here the line can be seen going in a vertical direction which allows te card to ben in a curve for the neckpiece. I gently rub the card over a rounded surface (the edge of my workbench) to get an even bend and the wire edging helps keep it in shape.

I wasn't happy with the finish on his body so I covered it with papier mache toi give a more even finish. The text of the ppaer will show trough the paint slightly giving an intersting finish.

 

I felt he needed a bit more interest so I've given him a mechanical arm made up from bits from my scrapbox. The hand is oversized, a mix of Hellboy and Umbrella Academy for inspiration here.

His powerpack is a joint section of plastic piping sporayed black with various funky bits added.
As he's taken shape his suit has become more of an environment/exoskeleton suit so Ive added bits of armour and protective plates, secured with split pins to act as rivets.

The paint job starts with a wash of yellow ochre rubbed into the textured surface. I then add shades of burnt umber stippled on and rubbed black with a paper towel to give an old rusty weathered look.

The steampunk 'tricorder' again made using stuff from the scrapbox and brass rod.

The finished sculpt.
More photos here.
By the way anybody else having problems uploading photos form their pc on blogger? I've had to do this on my ipad as the upload box won't let me access photos.