UMS "Agram" : We visited: Kontrast Miniature Painting Festival < Articles < Hobby

We visited: Kontrast Miniature Painting Festival

Marko Paunović, 5th June 2025

This year, our member Ivan Knezović and his brothers, Petar and Filip, (popularly called the Knezović Clan) visited the Kontrast international miniature painting competition in Poland. And this is his report.

One of the largest miniature painting competitions in the world has been taking place in Warsaw since 2021. The Knezović clan visited Kontrast for the first time in 2023. The event was great and we enjoyed almost 1500 works, many of which were made by masters at the highest artistic level. We decided to visit Warsaw again in 2025, after completing enough works to justify the 12-hour drive one way.

We came to Kontrast as a kind of UMS Agram emissaries, and we handed out flyers for Black Queen 2026 and met a number of other enthusiasts, and we hope that some of them will visit Zagreb. We also brought home the Best of Show medal for the work that impressed us the most. We awarded the UMS Agram Best of Show to Dimosthenis Xylas, a miniaturist from Athens, for his dwarf. The work impressed us with its phenomenal atmosphere, smooth transitions, the play of multiple light sources, the level of quality on each individual element, and the convincing textures of the metal. Also, we simply love dwarfs.

The number of phenomenal works was large, because in 2025 more than 1700 works were exhibited in 2 classes - Standard for beginners and hobbyists and Master for professionals and those who have already proven themselves at international competitions (everyone who won gold in Standard will compete in Master in the future).

Petar won silver in the Master in 2023 and exhibited his works in the Master in 2025, while Filip and I did not have such good results and entered our works in the Standard.

One of the works that particularly stood out was Captain Titus from the game Space Marine 2 in a huge scale, it seems to me to be 1/4. It may not be the best, but it is a work that all visitors noticed.

One of the works that impressed us was a truly enormous diorama of Khorne Chaos Space Marines vs. Ultramarines. The diorama is huge, but each model is painted to a very high standard and contains about 30 models in various sizes. It is an imitation of a famous painting depicting a battle in Warhammer 40k.

Going through every work that impressed us would make this article too long, and words convey much less than photographs. Luckily, Filip came with a very good camera, so I leave some pictures for the readers to enjoy.

Our results were beyond expectations. Petar did not return with a medal, because during the 2 years he worked mostly on orders. He painted more than 400 models, but almost all of them were orders. In 3 days he painted the Durgin Paint Forge Orca. The model is really excellent, but the competition was great. With a few more days of work he would definitely be in the running for a medal. I think he can be satisfied with his work and next time aim for a medal with 6 days of painting.

Jure Cukar, for whom we carried 3 models, won 1 silver in the Standard class.Filip won 2 silvers in the Standard class for his lizards (dioramas) and for his ambient soldier (single model up to 54 mm).

I came to Kontrast with 5 exhibits. I came back with results that I did not expect even in my most optimistic dreams, because this is a truly huge competition with numerous top artists. I entered all my works in the Standard class.

For my Midori bust, I won gold in the Standard Historical and Realism category and an award from Alternity Miniatures, the company whose bust it is a product.

For my cat Albert, I won silver in the Standard Storytelling category.

For Dwarf Lord, I won gold in the Standard category for models larger than 54 millimeters.

For my dwarf adventurers, I won gold in the Standard Diorama category, a medal from Verko's Vault (miniature museum in Las Vegas) and what I really didn't expect, Best of Standard – the award for the best work of all works in the Standard category.

Finally, and this is perhaps the greatest recognition for my work, I won silver in the Master category for my Infinity regiment. Namely, all competitors submitted their works in only one class, either Standard or Master. However, the judges reserved the possibility of moving the model from Standard to Master.

All in all, Kontrast is a great experience. I hope we will visit Warsaw again, if not in 2026 then in 2027. In the meantime, I hope our Black Queen will also visit some of the new people we met in Poland.

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SFRJ 1986 v2 Diorama part 5

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	In this series of articles, we will follow my work on a new diorama, another in the 1986 series. This time I have again decided to use a former country. Another version of the SFRY 1986.

	  

	So far I have finished making the base, painting the base, painting the interior of the vehicle and painting the figures. Now it's time to add the vegetation

	  

	The pines/trees were already fixed to the base before painting, so the first vegetation I added was tall shrubs that filled the volume of the base.

	  

	Then I added lower vegetation like tall grass and lower bushes.

	  

	Finally, I added some short grass, making sure when I was making the parking lot and path that there was no vegetation in the places where the wheels pass.

	  

	The paint on the base has just dried up, so next time I'll add the vegetation.

	  

	When the diorama is turned to the back, the volume of the forest is visible.

	  

	Before placing the vehicles and miniatures on the base, the diorama looks like this.

	  
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	U ovoj seriji članaka pratit ćemo moj rad na novoj diorami, još jednoj u nizu serijala 1986. Ovaj put sam se opet odlučio za bivšu državu. Druga verzija SFRJ 1986..

	  

	Do sada sam završio s izradom baze, bojanjem baze, bojanjem interijera vozila i bojanjem figura. Sada je došlo vrijeme za dodavanje vegetacije

	  

	Borovi/drveće je već bilo fiksirano na bazu prije bojanja pa je prva sljedeća vegetacija bila visoko žbunje kojim sam popunio volumen baze.

	  

	Potom sam dodao niže raslinje poput visoke trave i nižeg grmlja.

	  

	Na kraju sam dodao i nisku travu pri čemu sam pazio kad sam radio ugibalište i puteljak da vegetacije ne bude na mjestima gdje prolaze kotači.

	  

	Kada se dioramu okrene, vidi se volumen vegetacije u šumi. 

	

	Prije postavljanja vozila i minijatura, diorama izgleda ovako:

	
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Marko Paunović, 19th January 2026

SFRJ 1986 v2 Diorama part 4

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	In this series of articles, we will follow my work on a new diorama, another in the 1986 series. This time I have again decided to use a former country. Another version of the SFRY 1986.

	  

	After the base and the vehicles, I started painting the miniatures. Two policemen and a truck driver. The first step was the base color – black and then white..

	  

	After that, I started with the basic colors, concentrating a little more on the truck driver..

	  

	Considering the year and location of the action, I decided that his jacket should have the logo from the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics..

	  

	Then I threw myself at the policemen..

	  

	The paint on the base has just dried up, so next time I'll add the vegetation.
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	U ovoj seriji članaka pratit ćemo moj rad na novoj diorami, još jednoj u nizu serijala 1986. Ovaj put sam se opet odlučio za bivšu državu. Druga verzija SFRJ 1986..

	  

	Nakon baze i vozila, bacio sam se na bojanje minijatura. Dva milicajca i vozač kamiona. Prvi korak je bila temeljna boja – crna pa bijela.

	  

	Nakon toga, krenuo sam s osnovnim bojama, malo više se koncentrirajući na vozača kamiona.

	  

	S obzirom na godinu i mjesto radnje, odlučio sam se da mu jakna ima logo od ZOI Sarajevo 1984.

	  

	Zatim sam se bacio na milicajce.

	  

	Taman se tako nekako osušila i boja na bazi pa ću sljedeći puta obraditi i dodavanje vegetacije.
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Marko Paunović, 19th January 2026

SFRJ 1986 v2 Diorama part 3

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	In this series of articles, we will follow my work on a new diorama, another in the 1986 series. This time I have again decided to use a former country. Another version of the SFRY 1986.

	  

	As I announced last time, it's time to get down to the vehicles. The first thing I did was disassemble the models and take out the interiors of all three vehicles.

	  

	As you can see in the picture, the interior of the vehicle is poorly or not at all painted, so a lot of attention and time was spent there. I painted the upholstery in shades of gray, or brown on the Tristač. I brought out the details on the dashboard and around the gearbox.

	  

	There was something missing from the start on the Fićo, but I couldn't figure out what it was until Kruno pointed out to me that the flashing lights were missing. I fixed that with a small 3mm clear LED that I painted in Tamiya Clear Blue with a silver edge.

	  

	This completes the painting of the vehicles’ interior.

	  

	The finishing touches are the decorations in the truck's cabin.

	  

	Next time we will continue with painting the figures.
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	U ovoj seriji članaka pratit ćemo moj rad na novoj diorami, još jednoj u nizu serijala 1986. Ovaj put sam se opet odlučio za bivšu državu. Druga verzija SFRJ 1986..

	  

	Kao što sam najavio prošli put, vrijeme je da se bacim na vozila. Prvo što sam napravio jest da sam rastavio modele i izvadio unutrašnjost sva tri vozila

	  

	Kako je vidljivo na slici, unutrašnjost vozila je slabo ili nikako obojana stoga je tu otišlo mnogo pažnje i vremena. Tapecirunge sam obojao u sive nijanse, odnosno u smeđe na tristaču. Izvukao sam detalje na komandnim pločama te oko mjenjača.

	  

	Na fićeku mi je otpočetka nešto falilo, ali nisam mogao skužiti što dok mi Kruno nije skrenuo pažnju da fali rotirka. Nju sam sredio pomoću jedne male 3mm prozirne LED koju sam obojao u Tamiya Clear Blue sa srebrnim rubom.

	  

	Time je završeno bojanje unutrašnjosti vozila.

	  

	Završni detalji su ukrasi u kabini kamiona.

	  

	Sljedeći put nastavljamo sa bojanjem figura.

	 
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Marko Paunović, 19th January 2026

SFRJ 1986 v2 Diorama part 2

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	In this series of articles, we will follow my work on a new diorama, another in the 1986 series. This time I have again decided to use a former country. Another version of the SFRY 1986.

	  

	Last time I explained how I created the terrain, and this time I'll be painting the terrain. The terrain itself consists of several parts: an asphalt road, a turnoff and path, and the terrain in the forest.

	  

	Since I wanted all the surfaces to have similar tones, I decided to paint without a base color, applying the main color immediately. The paint I applied was very thin so it stayed wet for a long time, which allowed me to mix the base colors and get a uniform tone.

	  

	After applying the basic tones, I started shading. I also used the same principle, using quite diluted tones to create unevenness in certain parts of the surface.

	  

	Then I added a layer that I could most simply call wash. A very diluted darker shade of color.

	  

	I applied the final shades using another technique, the simplest one – dry brush.

	  

	While these paints were drying, I was simultaneously disassembling and painting the interior of the car and truck, as well as the figures, which will be the subject of future articles.
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	U ovoj seriji članaka pratit ćemo moj rad na novoj diorami, još jednoj u nizu serijala 1986. Ovaj put sam se opet odlučio za bivšu državu. Druga verzija SFRJ 1986..

	  

	Prošli put sam objasnio kako sam izradio teren, a ovaj put ću se baviti bojanjem terena. Sami teren se sastoji od nekoliko dijelova: asfaltna cesta, ugibalište i puteljak te teren u šumi.

	  

	S obzirom da sam htio da sve površine imaju slične tonove, odlučio sam se bojati bez temeljne boje, nanoseći odmah glavni ton. Boju koju sam nanosio bila je jako razvodnjena tako da je dugo bila mokra i to mi je omogućavalo miješanje osnovnih tonova i dobivanje ujednačene tonove.

	  

	Nakon nanošenja osnovnih tonova, krenuo sam sa nijansiranjem. Također sam radio istim principom, dosta razvodnjene tonove kako bih dobio neujednačenost pojedinih dijelova površine.

	  

	Potom sam dodao sloj koji bih najjednostavnije mogao nazvati wash. Jako razvodnjenu tamniju nijansu boje.

	  

	Završne nijanse sam nanio drugom tehnikom, najjednostavnijom – dry brush.

	  

	Dok su se ove boje sušile, paralelno sam rastavio i bojao unutrašnjost automobila i kamiona te figura što će biti tema sljedećih članaka.
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Marko Paunović, 19th January 2026

SFRJ 1986 v2 Diorama part 1

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	In this series of articles, we will follow my work on a new diorama, another in the 1986 series. This time I have again decided to use a former country. Another version of the SFRY 1986.

	  

	As always, everything starts with an idea. This time, the idea came from a model of an Agrokomerc truck that Bojan brought me from Serbia (where it was published as part of a magazine). The design itself changed a bit over time (the first few months of planning). Initially, it was supposed to be just a truck at a roadside stop. Then the idea came to include the Police. And then I got two police vehicles. Fić and Tristač. Basically, this is the first drawing that started it all.

	  

	The base for the diorama came from Moson, from Buco. A fantastic combination of MDF and Styrodur that allows you to remove the diorama itself, but also to lower the terrain below the base level. I removed the Styrodur base, modeled it a little to get different terrain height levels. I modeled the road from a cork board, and assembled the rest of the terrain from DAS clay and wooden bark.

	  

	Once everything was dry I added texture. Two or three sizes of sand and that was it.

	  

	And when that layer was dry, I used a drill to fix the trees to the back of the base. Since all the trees had tall trunks, I decided to leave them as is and not move them during the painting process.

	  

	That's it for this week. We already have a nice outline of the diorama, and next time we'll continue with painting the base.
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	Kao i uvijek, sve počinje idejom. Ovoga puta, ideja se izrodila iz makete Agrokomercovog kamiona kojeg mi je Bojan dofurao iz Srbije (gdje je izašao u sklopu nekog časopisa). Sami dizajn se malo mijenjao tijekom vremena (prvih par mjeseci planiranja). Otpočetka, trebao je to biti samo kamion na nekom ugibalištu pored ceste. Onda se rodila ideja da stavim i Miliciju. A onda sam nabavio i dva milicijska vozila. Fiću i Tristača. Uglavnom, ovo je prvi crtež od kojeg je sve krenulo.

	  

	Baza za dioramu je došla s Mosona, od Buce. Fantastičan spoj MDFa i stirodura koji omogućava vađenje same diorame, ali i upuštanje terena ispod razine baze. Izvadio sam stirodurnu podlogu, malo je izmodelirao da dobijem razne razine visine terena. Cestu sam izmodelirao iz ploče pluta, a ostatak terena složio od DAS glinamola i drvenih kora.

	  

	Kada se sve osušilo dodao sam teksturu. Dvije ili tri veličine pijeska i to je to.

	  

	A kada se i taj sloj osušio, bušilicom sam fiksirao drveće na stražnji dio baze. S obzirom da su sva stable imala visoka debla, odlučio sam ih ostaviti tako i ne micati ih za process bojanja.

	  

	To je to za ovaj tjedan. Imamo već lijepe obrise diorame, a sljedeći puta nastavljamo sa bojanjem baze.
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Marko Paunović, 19th January 2026

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We visited: Kontrast Miniature Painting Festival

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