Figure Painting for Beginners
By Chris Parkin
Part 1: The Materials
Other articles in this series:
Part 3: Uniforms and Equipment
(Articles originally published in the BMSS Bulletin magazine)
A section of Chris Parkin's "Recruiting Officer" diorama
Of the various types of military modelling, figure painting can be the most challenging. The different materials and textures of flesh, clothing leather and metal need to be accurately represented to achieve a realistic result. The areas of the figure in light and shadows and the folds in the clothing should be shaded and highlighted to avoid a flat, featureless, effect. In my, admittedly limited, experience I have found that the best type of paints to use are artists oil colours.
To those who haven't tried it before, the mere thought of painting in oils may be daunting, but with practice and patience the end result will be well worth the effort.
An essential requirement for successful painting is a selection of high quality brushes. Only the best will do, I'm afraid, and although artists sable pencils are expensive, the quality of finish will be far superior to that produced by a cheap brush. An acceptable substitute are those brushes with man-made fibre bristles; although they have the disadvantage that they do not hold paint very well and the points tend to bend double permanently after painting into recesses, they are comparatively inexpensive. Like everything else in this life, you get what you pays for. Three or four good brushes will be sufficient. The sizes that I use most frequently are: No. 2 for large areas and priming, No. 1 for blocking in base colours, Nos. 0 and 00 for fine detail and blending. Unless you intend to paint flats, No. 000 any anything smaller are not worth buying as they hold little paint.
Take your time when choosing brushes; choose those with long bristles and moisten them between your lips to ensure that they come together in a needle point. You will probably attract strange glances from the shop assistants as you do so, but do not be deterred; just smile winsomely to cover your embarrassment. Keep in mind that these are expensive items so don't be tempted to buy the first one you pick up. At the end of each painting session, thoroughly wash your brushes in turps and gently squeeze out the excess onto a cloth or paper towel. A little soap worked into the bristles with finger and thumb will help to keep them supple and preserve the point.
Now for the paints. Rowney and Winsor & Newton produce small "students" tubes of oil paints in a wide range of colours. The pigments are not so finely ground as in the large "professional" tubes, but these are considerably less expensive and should last a long time, as the amount used for each figure will be small. A basic range of colours could be as follows: - titanium white, lamp black, yellow ochre, cadmium lemon, burnt umber, alizarin crimson, scarlet lake, cobalt blue, French ultramarine and Prussian blue.
Also useful are a couple of greens, chrome green and oxide of chromium. Theoretically, there are only five essential colours; red, yellow, blue, black and white, and all the other shades can be mixed from these. In practice, this is a tedious, hit and miss business, not worth the time and frustration. My own preference is for Winsor and Newton paints as these are not so oily as others, allowing better control of consistency.
Oil paint that is brushed on too thickly will obscure the detail on the figure, and will leave brush marks and unsightly ridges, so it is necessary to use a thinning agent. Turpentine (not white spirit) is the most common and should. be added until the paint is of the consistency of thin cream. Use either a purpose made palette, an old saucer, or even a ceramic tile when mixing and thinning. Turpentine will also speed up the drying time, which can be further accelerated by placing the figure in a warm place - an airing cupboard is ideal.
Always cover the figure while it is drying, as wet oil paint attracts dust like a magnet attracts iron filings. Oil paint can be kept fresh for several days by covering your palette with cling film or kitchen foil and placing it in the refrigerator. Remember that turpentine evaporates rapidly, so from time to time check the consistency of the paints and add turps as necessary.
I have found that various colours dry to different finishes. For instance, white will dry matt, but burnt umber dries with a high gloss. To gain uniformity of finish the addition of a matting agent, such as Parris's Marble Medium or Winsor and Newton's Opal Medium, mixed into the paint will cause it to dry to a slight sheen. Alternatively, one or two thin coats of Humbrol or W & N matt varnish, applied when the paint is absolutely dry, will serve equally well. Good lighting is necessary as well.
Ideally, painting should be carried out by daylight, but as most of us have to work during the day this is obviously impractical. I have found that a desk lamp such as an Anglepoise, adjustable to any position and fitted with a 10w bulb is adequate.
That seems to be the basics covered reasonably well, but obviously each painter will adopt certain factors to suit his own circumstances and resources. In part 2 we shall discuss methods and techniques.
This article was originally published in the British Model Soldier Society Bulletin, the quarterly journal of the Society. The Bulletin, Bulletin Extra and BMSS Handbook sheets are sent regularly to members. For details of subscriptions see How to Join
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