UMS "Agram" : Building a modular river < Articles < Hobby

Building a modular river

Marko Paunović, 11th September 2020

If you've been following my articles about building terrain in previous articles on this site, you'll know that I've slowly been making terrain for my Wild West table for Malifaux. I've already built a church with a graveyard, an undertaker's on a hilltop, a minehead entrance, a watertower and in the last issue I've covered the building process of modular railroad tracks. This time, I decided to do a modular river to span the length of the standard Malifaux table.

Idea and planning

As always, planning is important, in some cases even vital part of the design process so it's always good to prepare yourself for the build. Good preparation not only saves money, but it also saves time. As I mentioned above, in this issue I'll be discussing how to build a modular river. Most of the rivers for tabletop look fake because people tend to make two banks with the river in the middle. This in itself is not bad, however, when placed on a flat tabletop, it will look more like a man made canal than a proper river. This had me thinking and I've come up with a simple solution. I decided to make the river modules about 30 x 30 cm (12'' x 12'') out of 2 cm thick HD styrofoam. This way, I'll have a part of the table at an elevated level with enough space to place some of the already built terrain. But most importantly the river won't look so much like a man made canal placed on top of the tabletop.

This in turn presented additional problems. Having such a river might provide some difficulties during gaming. How to get across to the other side, lots of free space with long lines of sight. Therefore, I decided that each of the three modules would have a river crossing. In order to make it as diverse as possible, I've decided to make one wooden pedestrian bridge, one railroad bridge (as I had some tracks left over) and one river crossing over shallows.

In fact, when I thought of the shallow crossing, it dawned on me that the overall setting on my table isn't what you normally see with lots of green colours and vegetation. It's almost desert like. That's the reason I decided to make the river almost dried up. (I will however, explain how to make the modules if you wish to have a full body of water inside your riverbed).

Materials and tools

After the rough sketch, I could make a definite list of materials and tools needed for this project. Those are as follows:
- roughly 10cm 2 mm balsa wood plank (they come in 10 x 100 cm planks)
- roughly 10cm of 5mm balsa wood plank (they also come in 10 x 100 cm planks)
- about half a sheet of 2cm thick HD styrofoam (50x100cm)
- about 30 x 30 cm of 5mm thick MDF
- superglue
- PVA glue
- 0,5 kg of DAS air drying clay
- gravel (four sizes)
- static grass / tufts
- AK Interactive Light and Dry Crackle Effect
- sanding paper (1 sheet)
- masking tape
- Gedeo Crystal Resin
- Pebeo Vitrail Colour – Greengold
- railroad tracks (toy)

The tools needed are:
- scalpel blade
- marker pen
- scissors
- modelling saw
- brushes – various sizes – for painting/washing and for drybrushing
- hot wire cutter

* Like in previous issues, I used my Proxxon table mounted circular saw, jigsaw on the MDF to cut the river base and cut the tracks to size.

Building the base

Having aquired all of the materials, using my scalpel blade, I first cut the three 30 x 30 cm modules from HD styrofoam. I then cut them in half with one side being about 20 cm wide and the other 10 cm. It was then time to draw the shape of the base of the riverbed on a piece of 5 mm thick MDF. If you have an irregularly shaped piece (like I had) it's wise to try different ways of placing your 10 x 30 cm riverbed modules to find the easiest way to cut the MDF. If you look carefull, you'll notice both red and green lines on my piece of MDF. In the end I cut the MDF along the green lines as it saved me a couple of passes with my jigsaw.

When both the HD styrofoam and MDF parts were cut, I made a mock assembly to find a suitable place to put my railroad tracks (as I had no straight lines, only curved). When I was satisfied with the layout, I cut the last piece of the track using my table mounted circular saw. If you don't own one, same can be done with either a scalpel blade or a modeller's saw.

When the railroad was cut, it was time to design the river banks. Placing the three pieces that make one module (small and large HD styrofoam part with MDF river bed in the middle), I drew the outline of the river bank using my marker pen. I made sure that the edges of the modules on both sides were exactly the same dimension. This would ensure that the modules can be placed in any formation. Following the drawn lines as closely as possible with my sclapel blade, I cut the embankments. It was now time to try to fit the MDF river bed to the remaining two parts. Again, using my marker pen, I marked 5mm from the bottom side of the styrofoam board and exactly 18 cm from the back of the larger and 6 cm from the smaller styrofoam piece. I cut along the lines and removed the excess material. This would ensure that my MDF riverbed would snuggly fit the HD styrofoam parts of each module.

Before assembly, I had to cut the surfaces of the embankments. I used my electric hot wire cutter. Hot wire cutter can come in several forms and power outputs. The one I have is the cheapest out there, powered by two AA batteries. How it works? The electricity from the batteries heats up the wire that then melts the styrofoam performing a perfect straight cut. However, as it heats the wire elongates so you should take into account that fact when fixing the wire to the cutter. It is quite cumbersome to operate in small, confined places which is the reason I used it before assembling the river modules.

When the embankments were formed, I turned the two HD styrofoam pieced over, generously poured some PVA glue and placed the MDF river bed in its place. Using my finger, I removed the excess PVA glue and with some 2 cm thick masking tape, I covered the joints between HD styrofoam and the MDF ensuring I had a really hard bond. Also, covering the joints with tape, enables you to procede with the build as it prevents the PVA glue from leaking. PVA glue normally takes up to 6 hours to fully cure.

With the tape in place, I turned over the tree modules and I built up some volume using DAS air drying clay. I made sure I had some clay on every edge of the module. When I add texture, this will ensure that the resin remain inside my module. I've already mentioned that I want the river to be half dried-up so this will actually help with the build as well as look good.

Texturing

At this point, I was nearing the end of the construction and all that had to be done before the painting was to add texture to the base. In order for the grooves that were cut with the hot wire cutter remain undamaged after undercoating (undercoat sprey burns styrofoam so it needs to be protected), I decided to cover those surfaces with a cote of pure PVA first. While it was drying, I took out all the gravel I was to use on this project: - chinchilla sand – smallest grain - basing grit in two sizes - chinchilla sand – largest grain

Once the PVA protection was dry, I smeared more wattered-down PVA on the vertical surfaces and sprinkled some smallest grain chinchilla sand. I then repeated the PVA smearing process on the roads and river shallows. Here, however, I first sprinkled over some largest grain gravel, next I sprinkeld some Basing Grit and to finish I poured over the smallest grain chinchilla sand. If you sprinkle gently and with care you can end up with nice variations in texture – for instance the middle of the dirt road usually has some larger stones as opposed to the sides of it. When the road was dry, I repeated the process with the rest of the base, sprinkling the two largest grains over the ground part. Inisde the riverbed, I carefully placed the largest gravel where the riverbed would be dry, and intentionally left the smaller grain where the water effect would be placed.

When I tackled the module with the railroad tracks, I first covered the route of the tracks with pure PVA glue to make sure the railorad tracks would stick. Then I sprinkled some roughest grain gravel along the route and in between the tracks.

You will notice that all of the modules have some parts of the modules without sand (with only PVA over them). This part of the modules would be covered with AK Interactive Light and Dry Crackle Effect paste to create the image of a dried up desert. But more about that a bit later on in this article.

Making the bridge structure

Before undercoating, there was only one more thing to do – the wooden pedestrian bridge. Using a 4,5 x 8,5 cm piece of 5mm thick balsa wood I made the body of the bridge. The dimensions I used are a bit odd, but it's only because the bridge was made to measure. I measured the width of the road and the span of the river and came up with those numbers. The 4,5 cm wide bridge would however accommodate every miniature base for Malifaux. When the body was cut, using a wooden stick, I made grooves across the bridge that would make up planking. Then, using 2 mm thick balsa wood, I made several supports for the bridge and glued them using super glue. Before gluing the bridge to the base, I undercoated the underside of the bridge as well as the river bank and river bed under the bridge to make my job easier later on.

Painting

First job when painting is to undecoat everything. This will help with the shading and the overall 3D effect of the entire terrain piece. Wanting all my terrain to fit one theme (and consequently one tabletop) it was only natural I use the same colours and colour scheme as on the earlier terrain. Therefore once again I used Pebeo Deco color range. I used Brown (29) for the basecoat and continued drybrushing with Ocre (51). Lighter shades were done with a 50:50 mixture of Ocre (51) and White (41). The final highlight was done with Antique White (69). The road and the river shallows were first basecoated with Brown (29) then heavily drybrushed with Ocre (51) and a 50:50 mixture of Ocre (51) and White (41). The last two highlights were Antique White (69) and pure White (41). This way, I had a visual difference between the normal groundwork and the worn out road.

The bridge and the wooden parts of the railorad tracks were painted by drybrushing first using a 50:50 mixture of Black (55) and Grey (54). Next layer was pure Grey (54) and the finishing highlight was Ash Brown (70). I was not quite satisfied with the result, so I added another highlight of pure White (41). The metal tracks were then painted pure metal (I used Citadel's Runefang Steel). When it was dry, as was the case in the last issue, I covered the metal bits with Model Mates' Rust Effect.

With the basic painting done, you'll have noticed the large patches without texture where pure PVA was placed in the texturing phase. As I promised before, I covered this parts using AK Interactive Light and Dry Crackle Effect. In some places I left only a thin layer, while in some I put it on generously and left it to dry. When it was dry, the effect of dried earth was created.

Vegetation

After the painting, it was time to add the vegetation to the base. Normaly, at this point, I'd add some trees (in the case of this Malifaux build, pine trees to be more exact). However, here I decided not to plant them as this way, the storage would be much, much simpler. And anyway, my intention is to make a lot of smaller terrain pieces (like small pine forest patches, some crates and other debris later on – maybe even in the next issue). With the trees out of the way, I added some static grass. I made a mixture using several green, brown, yellow and black shades of static grass and when I was satisfied with the end product, I glued it in random patches throughout the modules. One thing I made sure of is that I put static grass over any and all of the remaining holes where the black undercoat melted the HD styrofoam in order to hide the unintentional mistake. Once the static grass was in place, I applied several shades of different tufts. Again, as in the former articles, I used tufts made by a company called Gamer's Grass.

Working with resin

The water on the tabletop terrain can be simulated in many ways. Some are better and more realistic, while some are simpler but less believable. In my experience, I've come across six ways of reproducing water. In the end I'll focus on one method that in my opinion gives the most faithful reproduction of water.

First method is to texture the surface using PVA glue and sand (which is an especially good method for streams) and then paint it using long strokes of greenish brownish tint. After the paint dries coat it with a thick layer of marine varnish or some other form of gloss cote.

The most primitive method is using water itself. Leaking and not having depth in artificial light are the biggest drawbacks apart from evaporation and tendecy to grow life.

The third option is using glass. Make a riverbed like I explained earlier and put a glass surface over it. For extra effect you can tint it on the bottom. However, it is difficult to shape, so that it is not worth the effort.

The fourth method is using plexiglas. Same principles apply here as in the previous method. It is relatively easy to cut and is good for flat and calm water. I've seen it used in railroad models extensively and while both of these methods can look good on static displays such as railroad model tables and such, on smaller pieces of terrain (like used on tabletop) it is better to avoid these two methods.

The fifth method to recreate water is using marine varnish. Pouring in numerous layers means it takes a lot of time to finish. And still you will not get much depth in your river/body of water. It is therefore suitable for small wetlands or small ponds and puddles on various terrains. As with the first method, work in well-ventilated preferably open areas.

The final method, and also the most realistic, is the usage of resins. Are usually two-component mixtures (one is resin, the other a hardener). They are a really good way of creating water, both still and running. Good depth can be achieved and they can be tinted with special colors so that you can get the shade of water you need. A few tips for working with resin: - Protect your hands - wear gloves - Work in well ventilated areas - Have thinner handy to clean up if your pours outside the wanted space - Stir in plastic cups - When it is poured, drill the bottom of the glass so that Resin can slowly leak to avoid creating air bubbles

There are numerous versions of resin available at the market today but I’ll name a few products I use.

First, two part resin called Crystal Resin which is made by a company called Gedeo. It comes in two various sizes (300 ml and 750 ml), and can also be bought predyed. It’s main advantage over other products out there is that it is mixed in 2:1 ratio (resin : hardener), unlike most products who mix in 97:3 (or similar) ratio. Because of the easy way to calculate the ratio, this enables me to use quantities I need and does not force me to use the whole package at once. It has a drying time of 24 hours.

Second, Vallejo Still Water which is an awesome one part resin. It does not require mixing and can be dyed using Vallejo colours. It comes in a 200 ml bottle and is great for small ponds on your bases.

The third kind I use is Vallejo Water Effects (Extra Heavy Gel). It comes in various colours, but I use the transparent one. It is a white paste with the consistency similar to that of a tooth paste that dries clear. It is great for modeling ripple effects or waves on your water surfaces.

Back to the practical application. For this build, I chose Gedeo Crystal Resin. I first mixed a batch of resin and hardener (2:1 ratio as per instructions). Once I got a murky consistency, I poured in some Pebeo Vitrail Greengold Colour. Using a stirrer, I mixed it evenly throughout the resin. When I was satisfied with the colour, I carefully poured the resin inside the modules making sure I do not drip where I'm not supposed to. I left it to dry for 24 hours and my modular river was done!

How to make full-bodied river modules?

Simple. Follow the steps described earlier up to the point of pouring in the resin. Before I could add resin into the riverbed, you need to make dams to prevent the resin from leaking. Easiest way is to use strips of plastic foil gently glued to the sides of each module using superglue. Then use Vallejo Extra Heavy Gel to seal the joints between the modules and the plastic foils on the inside of the riverbed. Leave it to dry thoroughly, day or two if neccesary. Once dry, covered the plastic foil on the inside with some cooking oil to prevent it from sticking to the resin. Then place all the modules next to each other and pour in the coloured resin of your choice into each of the modules making sure that the level of the river in each module was the same. Leave it to dry for 24 hours, at least. Also, if you want to have a gradual transition of the colour in your river (pure resin on top with the darkest colour in the bottom), use several layers starting, obviously with the darkest colour allowing each layer to fully cure. Once the resin is dry, remove the plastic foil dams and there you have it – river done. To add some ripples and waves, you can use Vallejo Extra Heavy Gel when the resin is dry.

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I recently was approached by the Historical Museum of Oslo to make three miniature dioramas for their exhibition MUMMY - a display of ancient Egyptian artefacts and mummies. Their requirements were that each of the three dioramas would portray a part of the life of one of the mummies from the exhibition, Dismut, a temple guardian’s daughter. Her Life, her Death and her Afterlife. In addition, they gave the maximum size of the display. This left me a lot of freedom for interpretation and to make the dioramas in my own way and style. In this article I’ll take you through part of my process for developing the three concepts. For a more detailed breakdown of the steps it took to complete the dioramas, see the videos.

My first focus was on the miniatures required. I searched online 3D-file shops to see what was already available. I knew this would be one of my limitations as there was no time or budget to 3D design all objects and characters required for all three dioramas. I found a pack of ancient Egyptian field workers, and so the Life diorama was created with this pack in mind - a tranquil scene by the Nile River, with workers harvesting wheat as Dismut observes from a higher vantage point. This diorama was also an opportunity to include some of the animals featured in the exhibition, so I found a cat and a mouse STL (and later a crocodile as well). As Dismut is not a famous pharaoh, there were obviously no STLs available of her, so I commissioned two 3D sculpts of her, giving me the chance to have her in the exact positions I needed for Life and Afterlife. In Death she would only appear as a mummified figure, easily available online.

I wanted the diorama to read from left to right, as the three dioramas would be displayed one next to the other, so as well as reading the specific Life diorama from left to right, I also wanted the entire display of all three dioramas to lead from left to right. I decided that from left to right the dioramas would also go from light to dark, Life being the lightest in tone and colour and Afterlife the darkest, reflecting the dioramas’ subjects. I decided on the scale for the entire display, around 50mm for humans, as this would be small enough to fit all the elements I needed, but large enough to fill up the dioramas with the amount of elements I found as STL’s and save me some time on not having to paint too many tiny details. I adjusted all STL’s to this scale, and found some realistic wheat plants online at the correct scale as well. And so the concept sketch for the Life diorama came together.

I knew that the Death diorama would be a burial ritual underground. I found a STL pack of several of the objects found in Tutankhamun’s grave, a burial ritual STL pack with two workers carrying a mummy and an ancient Egyptian priest. This would give me the scene. As the dioramas were going to have to be made as cubes, closed on all sides with walls, except for the front, as opposed to the open dioramas on display bases that we are used to, a part of planning each scene was also figuring out how to make the two sides and back panel a natural part of the dioramas. In Life this was an impossible task as no outdoor area is a cube, but I decided on making each side a rocky cliff and hoping the illusion of the scene would make the unaturally geometrical shape of the landscape become less visible. For Death my solution was a roller with Egyptian hieroglyphs. With this I could fill out each wall with historically accurate symbols and this way create interest in the surroundings of the scene as well. And for Afterlife, as this is already a “supernatural” scene, the walls would be bricks, extending the typical art found in Egyptian tombs portraying the Egyptian afterlife of Duat, into a 3D space. Generally I found a lot of inspiration and direction for this entire project from ancient Egyptian art and wall paintings.

The Afterlife diorama would have to have an Osiris character, the Egyptian God of the Dead, overseeing Dismut’s journey to Duat. As all STLs I could find of him had warrior poses, I instead commissioned a seated Osiris figure, as well as the scale that would measure Dismut’s heart against a feather, and thus if she is worthy of the Afterlife. I found a STL of Thoth, taking notes, and thought it suitable for the God judging the dead - in this case Dismut.

After the concepts were approved by the museum, so started a several months long process of getting the MDF walls for the cubes, cutting, carving and gluing XPS foam at the correct angles, sizes and shapes, painting around 40 miniature characters and objects, with airbrush and brush, creating and painting the landscapes, pouring epoxy resin for the Nile River as well as many other smaller and larger tasks. Of the many ideas that came during the making of the dioramas (not reflected in the concept sketches), one that I think especially contributed to the overall look of the final display, was the fact that I decided that each diorama would have its own main colour. Yellow for Life, sun and desert, Red for Death, underground an earthy, and Blue for Afterlife, cold and melancholic. This would differentiate the dioramas from each other even when being viewed from a distance, as well as give a natural progression from warm to cold, another way to add contrast and make the dioramas read in my preferred direction, from left to right. This was achieved most obviously through the choice of oil colours used to shade the three dioramas. Apart from that, the acrylic paints chosen are the same for all three dioramas, giving a cohesion of colour as well as being based on the available pigments they would have had at the time in Ancient Egypt - mineral pigments like lapis lazuli, red and ochre, soot for black, copper compounds for blue and green and synthetic pigments like Egyptian blue.

The final result is displayed here and will also be on display at Oslo’s Historical Museum for the foreseeable future. If you visit the city, make sure to stop by and have a look at the final display.

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Nedavno me kontaktirao Povijesni muzej u Oslu da izradim tri minijaturne diorame za njihovu izložbu MUMIJA - prikaz drevnih egipatskih artefakata i mumija. Njihovi zahtjevi bili su da svaka od tri diorame prikazuje dio života jedne od mumija s izložbe, Dismut, kćeri čuvara hrama. Njezin život, smrt i zagrobni život. Osim toga, dali su maksimalnu veličinu prikaza. To mi je ostavilo puno slobode za interpretaciju i izradu diorama na moj vlastiti način i stil. U ovom članku provest ću vas kroz dio svog procesa razvoja triju koncepata. Za detaljniji pregled koraka potrebnih za dovršetak diorama pogledajte videozapise.

Moj prvi fokus bio je na potrebnim minijaturama. Pretražio sam online trgovine s 3D datotekama kako bih vidio što je već dostupno. Znao sam da će to biti jedno od mojih ograničenja jer nije bilo vremena ni proračuna za 3D dizajn svih predmeta i likova potrebnih za sve tri diorame. Pronašao sam skupinu drevnih egipatskih poljskih radnika, pa je diorama Život nastala imajući tu skupinu na umu - mirna scena uz rijeku Nil, s radnicima koji žanju pšenicu dok Dismut promatra s više točke. Ova diorama bila je i prilika za uključivanje nekih životinja predstavljenih na izložbi, pa sam pronašao mačku i miša u STL-u (a kasnije i krokodila). Budući da Dismut nije poznati faraon, očito nije bilo dostupnih STL-ova za nju, pa sam naručio dvije 3D skulpture, što mi je dalo priliku da je imam u točnim položajima koji su mi bili potrebni za Život i Zagrobni život. U Smrti bi se pojavila samo kao mumificirana figura, lako dostupna online.

Želio sam da se diorama čita slijeva nadesno, budući da bi se tri diorame prikazale jedna pored druge, pa sam, osim što se specifična diorama Života čita slijeva nadesno, također želio da cijeli prikaz sve tri diorame ide slijeva nadesno. Odlučio sam da će diorame slijeva nadesno ići od svijetlog prema tamnom, pri čemu će Život biti najsvjetliji po tonu i boji, a Zagrobni život najtamniji, odražavajući subjekte diorama. Odlučio sam se za mjerilo za cijeli prikaz, oko 50 mm za ljude, jer bi to bilo dovoljno malo da stanu svi potrebni elementi, ali dovoljno veliko da ispuni diorame količinom elemenata koje sam pronašao kao STL-ove i uštedi mi vrijeme jer ne bih morao slikati previše sitnih detalja. Prilagodio sam sve STL-ove ovom mjerilu i pronašao sam neke realistične biljke pšenice na internetu u ispravnom mjerilu. I tako je nastala konceptualna skica za dioramu Života.

Znao sam da će diorama Smrt biti pogrebni ritual pod zemljom. Pronašao sam STL paket nekoliko predmeta pronađenih u Tutankamonovoj grobnici, STL paket pogrebnog rituala s dva radnika koji nose mumiju i drevnim egipatskim svećenikom. To bi mi dalo scenu. Budući da su diorame morale biti izrađene kao kocke, zatvorene sa svih strana zidovima, osim sprijeda, za razliku od otvorenih diorama na izložbenim postoljima na koje smo navikli, dio planiranja svake scene bio je i smišljanje kako učiniti dvije strane i stražnju ploču prirodnim dijelom diorama. U filmu Život to je bio nemoguć zadatak jer nijedno vanjsko područje nije kocka, ali odlučio sam svaku stranu napraviti kao stjenovitu liticu i nadao se da će iluzija scene učiniti neprirodno geometrijski oblik krajolika manje vidljivim. Za Smrt moje rješenje bio je valjak s egipatskim hijeroglifima. S tim sam mogao ispuniti svaki zid povijesno točnim simbolima i na taj način stvoriti interes i za okolinu scene. A za Zagrobni život, budući da je ovo već „natprirodna“ scena, zidovi bi bili od cigli, proširujući tipičnu umjetnost pronađenu u egipatskim grobnicama koje prikazuju egipatski zagrobni život Duata u 3D prostor. Općenito sam pronašao mnogo inspiracije i smjernica za cijeli ovaj projekt u drevnoj egipatskoj umjetnosti i zidnim slikama.

Diorama zagrobnog života morala bi imati lik Ozirisa, egipatskog boga mrtvih, koji nadgleda Dismutovo putovanje u Duat. Budući da su svi STL-ovi koje sam mogao pronaći o njemu imali ratničke poze, umjesto toga sam naručio sjedeću figuru Ozirisa, kao i vagu koja bi mjerila Dismutovo srce u odnosu na pero, te time utvrdila je li dostojna zagrobnog života. Pronašao sam STL Thotha, bilježio i smatrao sam da je prikladan za Boga koji sudi mrtvima - u ovom slučaju Dismuta.

Nakon što je muzej odobrio koncepte, započeo je višemjesečni proces nabave MDF zidova za kocke, rezanja, rezbarenja i lijepljenja XPS pjene pod ispravnim kutovima, veličinama i oblicima, oslikavanja oko 40 minijaturnih likova i predmeta airbrushom i kistom, stvaranja i oslikavanja pejzaža, izlijevanja epoksidne smole za rijeku Nil, kao i mnogih drugih manjih i većih zadataka. Od mnogih ideja koje su se pojavile tijekom izrade diorama (koje nisu odražene u skicama koncepta), jedna za koju mislim da je posebno doprinijela ukupnom izgledu konačnog prikaza bila je činjenica da sam odlučio da će svaka diorama imati svoju glavnu boju. Žuta za život, sunce i pustinju, crvena za smrt, podzemlje i zemljanost, a plava za zagrobni život, hladnu i melankoličnu. To bi razlikovalo diorame jednu od druge čak i kada se gledaju iz daljine, kao i dalo prirodan prijelaz od toplog prema hladnom, još jedan način dodavanja kontrasta i da se diorame čitaju u mom željenom smjeru, slijeva nadesno. To je najočitije postignuto odabirom uljanih boja korištenih za sjenčanje triju diorama. Osim toga, akrilne boje odabrane su iste za sve tri diorame, što daje koheziju boja, a ujedno se temelji na dostupnim pigmentima koje su imali u to vrijeme u drevnom Egiptu - mineralni pigmenti poput lapis lazulija, crvene i oker boje, čađa za crnu, spojevi bakra za plavu i zelenu te sintetički pigmenti poput egipatske plave.

Konačni rezultat je ovdje izložen i bit će izložen u Povijesnom muzeju u Oslu u doglednoj budućnosti. Ako posjetite grad, svakako navratite i pogledajte konačni postav.

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Sebastian Søgård, 17th June 2026

Miniature Painting Workshop - 75mm Dwarf

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	On 09-10.05.2026. we held a new weekend miniature painting workshop. This time it was the turn of a dwarf in 75mm scale.

	

	




The workshop was held over two days (a whole weekend) and the participants painted a 75mm miniature dwarf. The focus of these lectures was painting various textures - metal, human skin, textiles and leather. Water-based acrylic paints were used in the workshop. For this purpose, the workshop leader, Ivan Knezović, chose a 75mm miniature dwarf from Durgin Paint Forge, sculpted by Carlos Perez Bugedo. The lectures were adapted so that the leader devotes equal time to all participants and can be adapted to all categories of miniaturists (from beginners to slightly more advanced).



	

	

	

	


The workshop took place as follows:

	First, the lecturer sits at his desk and explains and demonstrates each step in painting a miniature/model on his specimen. His work is displayed on a screen via a camera and projector, which the participants listen to, watch, and ask questions about.

	Then, the participants sit at their desks and apply the knowledge they have gained. The facilitator circulates among the participants and checks how each participant is doing. This way, he or she can adapt to each participant individually.




	

	

	

	The workshop will include the following thematic units:

	1. NMM (Non metallic metal)

2. Reflections of ambient colors on metal

3. Steel / gold

4. Face painting (male)

5. Adding vibrancy to the face (filters)

6. Extracting textures from fabric, metal and leather

	

	

	POWERED BY: Carta Magica, Fireball Figurines, Durgin Paint Forge, Playsupport
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	09-10.05.2026. smo održali novu vikend Radionicu bojanja minijatura. Ovoga puta na redu je bio patuljak u 75mm mjerilu.

	

	Radionica se provodila kroz dva dana (cijeli vikend) i polaznici su bojali 75mm minijaturu patuljka. Fokus ovih predavanja bilo je bojenje raznih tekstura – od metala, ljudske kože, tekstila i kože (leather). U sklopu radionice korištene su akrilne boje na bazi vode. U tu svrhu, voditelj radionice, Ivan Knezović, izabrao je 75 mm minijaturu patuljka tvrtke Durgin Paint Forge, koju je sculptao Carlos Perez Bugedo. Predavanja su prilagođena tako da voditelj posveti jednako vrijeme svim polaznicima i može se prilagoditi svim kategorijama minijaturista (od početnika do malo naprednijih).

	

	

	

	Radionica se odvijala na sljedeći način:

	Prvo, predavač sjedi za svojim stolom te objašnjava i demonstrira pojedini korak u bojanju minijature/makete na svojem primjerku. Njegov rad se preko kamere i projektora prikazuje na platnu što polaznici slušaju, gledaju, ali i postavljaju pitanja.

	Potom, polaznici sjedaju za svoje stolove i primjenjuju stečeno znanje. Voditelj kruži između polaznika i provjerava kako svakom polazniku ide. Na taj način, može se prilagoditi svakom polazniku ponaosob.

	

	

	

	Radionica će uključivati sljedeće tematske cjeline:

	1. NMM (Non metallic metal)

	2. Refleksije boja iz okoline na metalu

	3. Čelik / zlato

	4. Bojanje lica (muškog)

	5. Dodavanje živosti na lice (filteri)

	6. Izvlačenje tekstura tkanine, metala i kože (leather)

	

	

	POWERED BY: Carta Magica, Fireball Figurines, Durgin Paint Forge, Playsupport
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