Finally!

Finished this lovely figure not an hour ago. As mentioned in the WIP thread, this is a 75mm resin fig, sculpted by Carl Reid and produced by Ellie Miniatures. All painting was done with Vallejo and Andrea acrylics and Citadel ink washes. The base is a homemade chunk of Black Oak recovered from this winter's icestorm.

I've painted this figure to represent a Zouave of the Imperial Guard, during the Franco-Prussian War, 1870. This regiment saw direct action in mid August as the French army created a defencive position from Metz to Gravelotte to stem the advance of the Prussian invaders while Napoleon III attempted to organize a second army at Chalons. The Guards took up the central position of the line at the town of Razonville... taking heavy casualties while doing great damage to the Prussians opposite them. Ultimately, the French army, including the Guard, were encircled and destroyed in detail at Sedan, two weeks later.

Thanx to Ian and Ellie of Ellie's Miniatures and to my PF brothers for their support and encouragement during this project and cudos to Carl Reid for sculpting such a beautiful figure that was an absolute joy to work on.

Thanx for looking in. Any thoughts, advice or comments are always welcome.

Cheers

Colin

Your best yet Colin. Love the sense if offence and balance. Great paint too.

Colin

Splendid work, great colour combination including the base,you are right it is a nice figure with a great pose and it is great to see one in colour, well done Carl, Ian and Ellie for the production of this. Colin I take it this will sit next to your french infantryman.

regards Zane

Hi Colin well done mate that looks great. the whole thing works so well together it's a credit to you. I think you have captured him very well indeed. and thanks for the piece of history to go with it. they were a great regiment and very brave men.

Keep up the good work, can't wait to see what you do with our Drummer!!!

Cheers mate

Ian

That's a real beauty. Nicely done Colin.

Xenofon

Beautifull work Colin!!
Nice groundwork, base and display.
Congratulations!

Regards
Pedro

Looking forward to seeing it in the flesh, mate. Well done

Lovely painting Colin.The groundwork sets the figure off nicely.

Fantastic work Colin. Superbly finished and I love the groundwork.

Cheers
Huw

Wow!

Good work Colin.
Is the shining on the red from the light.

Marc

Nice one dude - I echo Fraser's sentiments - your best yet!

Cheers,

Brian

Thank you all for the kind words and comments.
With all the colour, the dynamic pose and detailed sculpt, this piece was an absolute joy to work on. Researching the unit uncovered an interesting history. Whether by design or accident, the Zouaves attracted the rogues and rakes of French society... kinda like the napoleonic hussars without the horses
To a couple of comments...
The red isn't dead flat but the lights make it much worse than it really is. To kill the glare of the red made it too dark for the rest of the figure. I got some matte medium that seems to help (too late for this fig but will help with future pieces.
The base is shorter than the fig at the back and taller than the fig at the front so... yes and no. I really wanted the impression of an uphill battle.

I don't know if it's my best but in the end I'm very happy with the way it turned out.

Thank you all for the positive feedback.

Colin

A lovely piece Colin, and excellent work on basing him !

Joe

Very nice result Colin!

Cheers
Adrian

Joe and Adrian, thanks for the kind words.
Adrian, thanks for your helpful input during the WIP. I got some matte medium... I'll be making good use of it from now on.

Cheers

Colin

Superbly presented on top of everything else. Your joy in producing this really does shine through and makes it an even better figure. Well done again.

That sloping effect on the base is highly effective. An idea I will certainly nick at some point!

Thanx much BP, very much appreciated. When you are enjoying a piece, it all seems to go well... when you aren't it seems nothing goes right.

Feel free to nick the idea... make the "consultation" cheque for $250K in Canadian fundsout to ChaosCossack Inc.

Cheers

Colin

The job's a good un Colin.
Great painting and groundwork has really enhanced the dynamic pose of the figure.
Well done Mate
Keith