Monster from Doom 3

[brandy]

This isn't *really* fan art, just modeled from a concept I thought was neat..
http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~crawzach/july/doommonstercolour.jpg
the back half is supposed to be mechanical, and I haven't been able to find any good methods of making mecha style detailing in sculpey.. any suggestions?
oh, and any critiques welcome.. I want to know how to do muscle properly..

oh, and it's not actually coloured, I did that in photoshop to see what it would look like if I had the courage to bake it :c)

process here:[1] (http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~crawzach/july/doommonsterrough.jpg) [2] (http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~crawzach/july/doommonsterrough2.jpg)

[creatix]

obviously for any sorta character types just use good human reference like the stuff on fineart.sk website

for something like this, to help you further with creature designs look at animal anatomy and skeletal references. I am sure you can find a good amount of reference for almost any creature type by looking at animals.

Bull and Rhino quickly come to mind when looking at this guy. You could probably emulate some of the muscle structure on an animal like that or maybe even dinosaurs to get the sculpture a bit more accurate. After you have that initial reference just flow with it conceptually and exaggerate muscles or stick with the animal reference.

Overall I like the piece a lot and the Doom 3 creature is an awesome piece.

also, not sure how experienced you are with sculpey but to help you refine it more, lay a sandwich bag (ziplock) over the top of it and then smooth out the muscles and also use sculpey tools to carve in wrinkles on top of the ziplock. The ziplock keeps your prints and smudges off the clay but allows you to refine with details and no depressions from your hands. I'm no pro but the teachers I have had ARE.

[brandy]

Thanks Creatix!

Yeah, proper references would be a real help, I was just doing this from a thumbnail sketch of the monster.. I've had a look through some references and I'll post some sketches of a new design and approach to the next iteration of this thing..

I'm totally new to sculpey, so I don't know whether this is a stupid question, but will the plastic coating really work on this one? it's a little under 2in (5cm) tall, and I was working with sculpey tools to put it together..

you know sculpey then? groovy! can I see some of your work? (pleease?) I'd be really keen to find out how to approach it, you might have been able to tell from the working pics that I'm not sure what I'm doing with it..

[creatix]

The only sculptures I have done are a 2 head sculptures and a full body sculpture. I gave a lot of my school work to my parents, so I dont have any of that stuff to show. Its not great stuff anyway, just typical student level stuff working with sculpey for only a few months. My experience and knowledge with it is not necessarily first hand, I have just had some amazing teachers that use the stuff for a living.

The info I gave you regarding the plastic and such is just their knowledge and teaching process which turns out good results when done properly.

The plastic bag thing helps with smudging and keeps your depressions off of the piece. It lets you refine better and does give the sculpey a very smooth rounded feel that may look good for muscles.

The process I was taught that made things easier was to develop your armature (sp?) using wire, then lay aluminum foil over the top. Use a glue gun or whatever is necessary to get the aluminum foil to stick together. Develop the basic shape and forms with aluminum, as this will save you tons of sculpey. Then just start overlaying the sculpey on top of the aluminum. I always start with major globs for major muscle points. After that its just time and experience.

I am not sure how things are done in the professional industry per say - things like Maquettes for Lord of the Rings or Spawn toys or something but the process I mentioned does turn out some great results if you have the talent and persistence. I have seen other students that have an insane knowledge of anatomy and form turn out beautiful (good enough for me to pay money for them) quality sculptures using the simple methods of aluminum foil (typical reynolds wrap) and super sculpey.

bottom line, keep at it, do research maybe online or with guys like Randy Bowen or Jamie Beswarick to see if you find some tips on how they work. Keep working at it and you will get better. Its an amazing medium.

just throwing out some ideas for you and sharing knowledge that I have gained from some talented artists/sculptors.

By the way, I am an artist - I am a game artist or will be very soon. I graduate in 6 days!! I'm a 3d artist and if you want to see work you can check out
www.gnomewerks.net
- my online portfolio thus far (still in the update stages)

as I said, I don't have sculptures worth showing or even available but I do plan on messin around with that medium again, so if I do, they will someday be posted on the gnomewerks site.

hope it all helps, and you're welcome for any and all help.

[creatix]

Oh yea I remembered a website you can see.

This is a friend of mine from my school (Art Institute) that just graduated. I do admit that I think he is a better 2d artist than I am but nothing that is beyond my level with effort. Its easier to compare and see his work rather than comparing to the guys that modeled the cave troll or gollum in Lord of the Rings (thats a bit ambitious right now).

Anyhow, on his site he has some sculptures that he has made. I am not 100% certain but I would say with about 80 - 90% certainty that he sculpted using the exact same process I mentioned (aluminum on top of wire armature - then just clay away).

His sculptures are pretty good for someone doing it as a strong hobby and interest (rather than professionally as a living). Using the same process, just putting time into it - you can achieve the same results rather quickly. Just keep sculpting.

heres the site
www.rudesite.net

[DETHSTRYKER]

Okay, i know that i am new here and that this is a dead thread. If you want to make mechanical parts the best way to incorporate them in a sculpture is to use brass rods. or even polystyrene rods and the such. or if you are hard core into sculpting then you should invest in kneadatites Brass/aluminum putty. more effectionatly dubbed "brown" stuff.