Another new project, based on the reference pic of J.E. Johnson. Very much in the early phases, but I thought I would post a bit more of a SBS version on this one. Progress will be slow because of the Holidays, but I'll try to post pics fairly regularly on the different steps. Once I have a head roughed in I generally start shaping the torso considerably undersized to allow for a thick layer of sculpey for more advanced anatomy and then the drapery. I'll add an armature for the limbs once I am satisfied with the torso. I will also continue to refine the facial features as the build progresses. I generally find the more I look at the reference, the more things I find to fix!

Niiice Martin!

Following this one

Head is excellent.
Too bad, there is no Spitfire MK I in that scale to display them together

I'm planning on doing the dog since Sally was a pretty important part of Johnson's story. I think it brings a little something different to the sculpt. Here's hoping that dog likenesses aren't too tough!!

Martin, This one will look nice with the dog included. ~Gary

So what was Sally then, a Black Lab?

Sally looks like a black lab to me, and she's generally described that way when being referred to. I'm always open to additional information though.

I love this thread, not nearly enough WWII British or Commonwealth material being done these days. The uniform always leaves a little artistic leeway during war time.

Looking good..!!!

Hi all, not much of an update, but after an early Christmas trip to Canada to visit my family, I managed to get back to the JE Johnson sculpt. Pretty minor progress, but the basic posture is roughed in. Underneath the clay there's electric fence wire with a little tinfoil to give the clay something to bite to. I'm hoping to make more progress over the next little while, so hopefully the updates will be more frequent and more substantial.

Very nice subject. Hope you will do the dog too.

marc

Just a quick update, the right side shoulders and chest are developing, along with the collars and scarf around the neck. Folds are roughed in and will undoubtedly be changed many times before they are finished. The belt around the waist is mostly to help determine proportions and will be refined and shaped to it's final form. I baked the figure after the collar and belt were in place so I can add clay and have a solid reference for sizing of the body.

A little more progress on the JE Johnson

sculpt, the legs are roughed in, along with the back of the jacket which isn't visible here. I need to remove some material in the crotch area since his legs are looking a bit too short. The folds in the pants will be refined and sharpened with carving and filing. If you notice, his face looks a little dark on one side. Last time I baked him his head detached and fell down into the bottom of the oven where it sat directly under the flame for at least 15 minutes. Fortunately Sculpey isn't damaged by heat, even though half his head is now a chocolately brown and he looks like a black and white cookie!

Looking good Martin. When working with Sculpey there are two (2) things that are a must. ~Gary

1. Set a timer, be it the one on your oven or an egg timer.

2. After baking let the piece sit in the oven to cool. This way the piece is not going from 200+ degrees to room temperature in a few seconds. This is to help ward off any possible fracturing or cracking due to the rapid temperature change.

Hi Gary,

Good advice there, and definitely should be heeded. I tend to bake far cooler and shorter than a lot of people....275 degrees for 30 minutes for even the thickest of pieces....sometimes as short as 15 minutes for thinner pieces. I find those times give the piece lots of hardness, but still leaves it soft enough to carve and sand. This was definitely a unique situation where the head fell out of the neck and rolled to the bottom of the oven. It's good to know that this material is pretty durable since there was no loss of detail even when exposed to direct flame for 15 minutes.

the dog days of....January??

This dog is kicking my butt, I've been digging for a likeness for days now and this is the closest I can get. Any suggestions on what's right/wrong would be much appreciated...I think I might be vapor locked on it right now so it might help me see something I am missing. There's still lots to do with a tail and getting his back legs right, but the head is where I'm really stuck. Thanks for any help.

Martin, I'm not seeing anything out of place.. dogs are so varied in their feature shapes and sizes it's hard to discern, maybe a slight tilt of the head?