Re: RANCOR Sculpt
Long time, no update. But I've been really busy on this build, especially this last few weeks. After the whole thing fell to pieces (apart from the face and arms) I rebuilt and studied as many pictures as I could. - This was tricky as there are not many images out there, but I think I have amassed quite a good collection. Even the new Rinzler ROTJ book has a couple of pics that have been put to use.
I'm really going for as close to the filming puppet as possible, whilst still trying to make this thing look good as a sculpture. So, there is some artistic license, but not much.
I've now completed both arms form-wise and I will now re-detail them.
The head kept getting too wide and large, even in the photos it looks a bit big, but looks pretty well-proportioned in the flesh. I know you should not detail before the forms are finished, but in discussion with Alaneye, sometimes you need to to get a good sense of how things are going. You can see that the jaw has been reworked here, hence no detail.
It is coming along pretty well - needs more investigation on the arm and of course the manacle needs finishing. I shortened the arms slightly, as they were thinning out a little too much at the ends. Started putting some more form and definition into the right foot too.
^ A bit of body texture experimentation. To do this I used either a needle or scalpel depending on the depth of the wrinkle. I worked with the scalpel angled upwards so the cut would have some overhang, like a tiled roof. I didn't spend too long fussing on this because if it didn't work I could just smooth the area down and start again. I worked in the main horizontal wrinkles, then put in fine vertical lines, then used the blowtorch very carefully and lightly to just about melt the surface. This causes the little square shapes to bloat and become more spherical.
After the pass is complete I wash over the area with white spirits to soften and blend. Very easy to do, but takes a little back-and-forth until the detail reads well.
^ The chunks of wire sticking out are like grab handles. The one thing which is tricky with monster clay is that it does react to the heat in your hands, obscuring detail quickly if you are not careful. I'm actually going to wear cotton gloves in later stages as it should keep my fingers cool.
^ So, yeah, how do I detail the back? Well, since taking these photos the beast has been decapitated. I will save the back for last and will be able to remove the sculpture from the frame, and rest it on its neck to work on. Also, I'm casting the head separately so lopping it off was my plan anyway.
If people see any areas on this sculpture they think are off, by all means voice your opinion. It is one of the main reasons I post on here
Thanks for looking!