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"He did honour to man" Death of Marshal Turenne by Mike Blank

Discussion in 'Completed Figures' started by Uruk-Hai, Jun 14, 2020.

  1. Uruk-Hai PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    Sweden
    Tu 01.jpg Tu 02.jpg Tu 03.jpg Tu 04.jpg Posting below on behalf off Mr Blank.

    Dear Friends
    I hope you are all safe and staying healthy.
    Yours truly thought it might be time for a new article, an article about an idea behind a vignette. The idea to create an emotional scene, full of drama and yet being a quiet scene.
    You guys probably know by now that I really love doing these vignettes and dioramas and the reason is that you are given a chance to tell a story, to create a frozen moment in time, a moment filled with drama and emotions. And without a story a vignette becomes a scene where a couple of individual figures happens to be on the same base.

    To try to create this story, atmosphere and emotions is truly a wonderful experience in sculpting, to have that idea in your mind and to see how it takes shape in front of your eyes.
    Suddenly these figures are working together and are telling a story.
    And this a story about tragedy, despair, sadness and loss.
    In 1675 the military genius Turenne, Marshal of France was killed at the battle of Salzbach, And France was shocked. Their beloved general was no more.
    With this vignette I wanted to create that moment when some of his soldiers are standing next to the fallen marshal, all being filled with powerful emotions of sadness, despair and grieve. A quiet and dramatic scene.


    The first step is to create the composition and here we have the marshall being the focus in the scene with his men looking at him and thereby drawing the viewers attention to Turenne, almost like the viewer of this vignette becomes a part of the scene and part of the story.
    To find inspiration for compositions like this we can look closely at classical art as there are numerous paintings showing some wonderful compositions and storytelling.
    And this I do every time I have an idea for a new vignette or a diorama.
    If you are gonna learn from someone, why not choose the true masters!
    The figure holding Turenne and the marshall himself was sculpted almost like a single figure to achieve a very tight animation. The remaining figures were posed around the dead marshal, forming a natural background and there framing the scene.
    Not the angles of the heads of the mourning soldiers, how they lower their heads in honour as well as sadness...


    With the kneeling figure in the foreground I wanted to create a stronger and more powerful emotion of sorrow, note his hands holding his hair and the expression on his face.
    As always don't forget to compose using colours, they can help to create a focal point in a scene as well as creating an atmosphere.
    So create a scene, tell a story and add lots of drama!
    And keep healthy
    The photos are taken by my dear friend and painter extraordinaire, Luca Olivieri.
    Mike
    Redcap, Blind Pew, KenBoyle and 8 others like this.
  2. Tecumsea PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    England
    Another outstanding piece of work from Mike. He is a unique talent to be enjoyed creating these wonderful scenes full of emotion, great use of colour and positioning of figures in small spaces.

    There are many wonderful artists both painting and sculpting in our hobby but only a handful have this unique talent where you can immediately say that's one of Mike's.

    Keith
    Uruk-Hai, Redcap and Blind Pew like this.
  3. OldTaff PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    England
    Keith, you hit the nail fairly and squarely on the head (y) Rarely do we see dioramas,vignettes ,etc., conveying such mood and emotion, all done with obvious love of the subject.
    Mike's commercial sculpts , too, convey this, and are a joy to paint.
    You can tell I'm a fan !:LOL:

    Alan
    Uruk-Hai likes this.
  4. fafo Member

    i like the scene. looks very real.
    Uruk-Hai likes this.
  5. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Uruk-Hai likes this.
  6. Borek A Fixture

    Country:
    Czech-Republic
    Great article, and great work on the vignette, ofcourse. Fantastic work in all aspects, and great reflection on the essence of creating this type of scene. Beautiful...

    Cheers Borek
    Uruk-Hai likes this.
  7. Alfonso Floren Well-Known Member

    Es una auténtica maravilla!!!!
    Uruk-Hai likes this.
  8. KenBoyle PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    United-States
    Amazing work! (y):)

    Cheers,
    Ken
    Uruk-Hai likes this.
  9. MoboSchreuder A Fixture

    Beautiful work

    Mobo
    Uruk-Hai likes this.
  10. Blind Pew A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Keith is spot on. It's a great compliment when one can look at a piece and immediately identify the artist. Mike's work has always had this accolade. Top drawer stuff.
    Uruk-Hai likes this.

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