74. Day, March 18, 2021


With the white daffodils ...



... the flower painting ends today ...:












Cheers

The wrapping...


Cheers

75. Day, March 19, 2021


The final detail on the flowers our hero carries is the material in which the stems are wrapped.

First of all to explain what the flowers actually mean:

They are NOT intended for the graves of the fallen (so your title is not quite right Kev!), but the surviving veterans of the Great Patriotic War receive them to honor and recognize their achievements on Victory Day - mostly from children ...













There are always moving scenes, as the pictures above show!

The state is certainly helping to organize in the background, for example by mobilizing school classes - but it doesn't have to do much.

For many parents it is perfectly normal to take their children to these events that they have bought flowers for!

The events between 1941 and 1945 are to this day a social cement that also holds the post-Soviet countries deeply together - and in this way, the following generations thank the old men and women who gave their lives for this To save the country from barbarism.

The importance that the Great Patriotic War has for every single family (there is hardly a family that has not lost at least one member!) Should not be underestimated in the West.

And now the missing detail:

Our hero wrapped his flower stems in something. That can be normal wrapping paper ...



... some "Kleenex"-tissue...



... Foil ...



... or anything else that is at hand ...:





I decided that our hero wrapped his flowers in ordinary newspaper!

For this I got myself a copy of Moscow's largest daily newspaper "Rossiskaja Gasjeta" on the Internet, of course on the exact date of the 75th anniversary of the victory (March 9, 2019) ...:



I scaled the newspaper down to the correct scale on the computer ...



... then with wood glue (which hardens clearly) ...



... attached in the right place and finally crumpled appropriately with toothpicks.

When glueing it on, I made sure that the newspaper title and the part of the headline with the "75th anniversary" are clearly visible - those in the know know immediately what they are looking at ...:





Tomorrow I will carefully age the "newspaper" with pastel chalk ...


Cheers

Some lovely photos there Martin. Nice work on the wrapping mate - the newspaper gives it a unique touch.

Phil

76. Day, March 22, 2021


So, the newspaper was appropriately - means cautiously - aged with pastel chalks...:










Cheers

77. Day, March 23, 2021


Matching to the face, but a tiny touch darker, as it is with hands ...:



The lined hand of an old man who's worked all his life ...:








Cheers

78. and 79. Day, April, 1 and 2, 2021


My beloved visit unfortunately first flew back to Odessa ...



... which on the other hand also means that I can continue with our veteran.

The second arm should be primed and mounted!

But before the priming and assembly, a closer look reveals that there is a nasty casting error running from the cuff to the shoulder - and over all on the visible side ...:



So first of all, patient carving and grinding is the order of the day ...



... until the arm is presentable ...:



Then it is primed ...





... and mounted with two-component adhesive ...:



And this time I'm smarter than assembling the other arm and filling the gap with "Milliput" BEFORE I paint the arm ...:





Cheers

Wow really Nice work. Love the newspaper

Flowers and newspaper turned out great! Definitely adds an extra detail to the figure. Ouch on the casting line

80. Day, April 3, 2021


The arm is underpainted...:



Three thin layers - better than one thick!

Lights and shadows are already a bit pre-structured ...:












Cheers

81. Day, April 4, 2021


First oil painting of the arm, lights and shadow zones are defined..:









After a day's drying break, I will gradually increase and refine the light / dark contrasts.
Cheers

82.Day, April 5, 2021


Back and forth, I'm done with the arm ...:







Tomorrow comes front and inside.

And finally a few highlights ...


Cheers

Wow !!