I know all of you are just dying to know how I made out at the big Wonderfest model contest in Louisville this last weekend.
Wonderfest is judged using an unusual system; the models don’t compete against each other, but are evaluated against a set of abstract standards. In order of increasing wonderfulness, the awards are Merit, Bronze, Silver, and Gold. This year, in a field of 502 models, perhaps a dozen Golds and maybe thirty Silvers were handed out.
I received two Merits and two Silvers, which was nice. I got Merits for my “Vickers Gomphothere Mk IV” diorama and my “Kid Colt, Outlaw” figure:
…and Silvers for my “Vicki the Biker” and “Vanship #7”:
Well, I have to say I came here hoping for pictures of models, as in pretty girl models.
That said, these are awesome! Congrtatulations on your awards. I especially liked the Vickers diorama. Have any pictures from other angles? Tell me more.
Do you have any idea when such a show may be in the Washington DC area?
It’s not what I expected either, but those are pretty interesting. Do you have a certain set or theme that you make models of? How do you find your inspiration?
Looks like there’s a Connecticut show in mid-June and a Pennsylvania show in late June that ought to be accessible for you.
Least Original User Name Ever asked about inspiration and theme. I like fairly lighthearted models, especially set in the heyday of pulp entertainment, the Thirties. Don’t like military stuff, or horror–too death-oriented. Inspiration is everywhere:
The Vickers Gomphothere grew out of a “make-something-out-of-a-helicopter-kit” challenge at a local hobby shop; one day I was noodling around with the helicopter fuselage and suddenly thought “…tracks!”. But I didn’t want to build something military, so what other kinds of vehicles use tracks? Exploration vehicles! …and who were the great explorers during the Thirties? Well, the Brits, of course… and it just kinda grew from there. The addition of the monster was a late-night inspiration to add a bit of humor.
Kid Colt, on the other hand, is pretty much straight out of the box; I saw the model online, loved the pose, and bought one. I did tilt his head a little and add some little details–but there wasn’t much inspiration involved.
Vicki suddenly popped into my head one day–She’s by far the best part of “Rose is Rose”, and I couldn’t believe that no-one had built a model of her yet. She’s an extensive conversion from a not-very-good superheroine kit.
The vanship attracted me with its corrugated sides and almost-Thirties look. But as I contemplated the kit it seemed to me that it needed to look more air-racer-y, so I took a deep breath one day and cut about an inch out of the length, then added a little vertical tail, reshaped the wheel spats, and did a few other little things to make it look more like a GeeBee.
I was prepared to sneer, “Hahh! So this is what passes for art amongst nerds!?” when I saw factory models of Star Trek ships, but I’ve gotta say this is some amazing work! Damn! Your stuff looks fantastic; like props for a film.
I honestly had no idea that this sort of scene even existed. Where can I see more?
Just incredibly cool. I would love to hear how what you start with - the trains and stuff I assume you start with a model and put into a scene. But how about humans - do you start with a pre-made figure?
Kid Colt is straight from the box–there are a vast number of “garage kits” out there, cast using polyurethane resin in rubber molds. The materials are expensive and the molds wear quickly, so garage kits are short-run and pricey.
Vicki the Biker is a conversion which started with a styrene model kit of Storm from the X-Men. (Styrene kits are what you probably think of when you think of model kits–like model cars, for instance). I glue together the parts of the kit, then cut it to bits, pin the bits together with short lengths of brass rod, then fill the gaps (and create new shapes) from epoxy putty. For Vicki’s torso and head I used castings I made myself, since the Storm kit’s were unusably awful. For her open hand, I molded epoxy putty over an armature made fo styrene and brass wire.
I didn’t take many pictures when I built Vicki, but here’s a link to my Bride of Frankenstein project which used the same basic technique:
Congrats!!! I always wondered if there were any resinheads on the Dope. I keep meaning to go toW’fest, though not as a contestant. (My modeling enthusiasm far exceeds my skill.)
Jettboy, the Model Clubhouse link that Rocketeer posted has a museum gallery with some amazing work. I think that you’ll be startled at the breadth of subjects that garage kitters cover.
