Silver Surfer Bust - Signed By The Surfer Himself

[RiggsMcClane]

Being a comic geek and particularly a fan of Doug Jones I decided to take on the movie version Silver Surfer. I chose not to sculpt the cg character and instead focus on the look of the suit worn towards the end of the movie. With that in mind I took to sculpting a half scale bust. I started a basic form a while back but had no real plans for it. All I really wanted to do was try my hands at a bust. When I decided on the Surfer I had to chop up bits of the sculpt to fit the characters proportions.

Here I've started to shape the shoulders and chest. At this point I realized the sculpt needed to be taller so it could have a base. I just lifted the sculpt from the armature and added clay.

I didn't want the bust to have a static pose so I repositioned it to where he's leaning slightly. Hang ten! Below that, the abs are nearly finished and it's taking on a more statuesque feel. I also gave the sculpt/base a subtle surfboard shape.

The next update I'll focus on the face and after that the final piece. Hope you guys like it so far.

 

[RiggsMcClane]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust

Alrighty, on with . . . duh face! To pull off the eyes I went to a local shop and dug around. Marbles were too big and no one had ball bearings. I ended up settling on glass sling shot pellets. They were roundish and came in a variety of sizes. Here I am trying to get the right depth for each eye. Not quite there yet.

A little peoples eyebrow action.

Some of the basic forms are now in place in this pic. I'm constantly tweaking everything as I go.

Lips, nose, and wrinkles make an appearance. Albeit only roughed out.

Some of the shapes are too literal here and have to be toned down. Sadly, I wouldn't get the chance hone in on the likeness exactly how I wanted. This is one of the last shots I took before refining the whole thing. I was pretty much running out of time and my picture taking became very sporadic. lol

Friday I'll post up the remaining pics.

 

[RiggsMcClane]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust - Update 5/14/14

Well, here's the final sculpt. As you can tell this changed quite a bit from the shots above. The likeness to the character in the film is still so-so but I could change some details later on anyway.

So there it be.

 

[HeroLids]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust - Sculpt Finished

That is awesome buddy, wicked finish to it, i cant smooth clay for love nor money lol love it

 

[Colossus601]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust - Sculpt Finished

Very Cool and Smooth sculpt.....it captures that classic "comic" pose look....Great Visual...I know the perils of trying to find the right size eyeballs. I recently went from sculpting 1/1 busts to a more manageable scale of about 1/5 and in doing so discovered that 4mm BBs work well...a look I must credit to RPF member Alaneye,in my slightly humble opinion,one of if not the best smaller scale sculptors on the site...its worth looking up his stuff. Aaaaanda its also great to have a fellow Okie in da house!.....where u b??? drop me a line thru RPF....I'm not ALONE in Redman land.....yeah.
Much success to you in sculpting!!!

 

[RiggsMcClane]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust - Sculpt Finished

That is awesome buddy, wicked finish to it, i cant smooth clay for love nor money lol love it

To be honest I wish I could have gotten it even smoother. A lot of what you see was done with mineral spirits and patience. lol The bad part is all the dents and dings you don't see until it's cast. Luckily I plan to make a cast and refine it for that surfer like shine.

Very Cool and Smooth sculpt.....it captures that classic "comic" pose look....Great Visual...I know the perils of trying to find the right size eyeballs. I recently went from sculpting 1/1 busts to a more manageable scale of about 1/5 and in doing so discovered that 4mm BBs work well...a look I must credit to RPF member Alaneye,in my slightly humble opinion,one of if not the best smaller scale sculptors on the site...its worth looking up his stuff. Aaaaanda its also great to have a fellow Okie in da house!.....where u b??? drop me a line thru RPF....I'm not ALONE in Redman land.....yeah.
Much success to you in sculpting!!!

Thank you good sir. I'll definitely check Alaneye out. The problem with being out in the sticks is finding useful materials nearby. Being an hour or so outside of Tulsa doesn't always lend itself to good prop making. Hence the sling shot pellets. lol Hey, Okies for duh win though right? hehe

 

[animefan]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust - Sculpt Finished

It definitely looks like silversurfer. So are you going to be coldcasting this baby now?

 

[RiggsMcClane]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust - Sculpt Finished

Well, that's really something I've been wanting to pursue. A number of members have chimed in and been very helpful in figuring out some methods for me to use. However, I still haven't gotten a finish I'm happy with yet. So I guess we'll see. lol

 

[pitchforknumb]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust - Sculpt Finished

Man, that sculpt is smooth. Great work. Did you sculpt this on top of an armature?

 

[RiggsMcClane]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust - Sculpt Finished

I just cut a hole in a wood base and put a length of pvc in it. Then stuffed wire into the pvc making a basic head and neck shape. It's almost all solid clay though. I'd snap a pic but it's still buried in the sculpt and I may convert that into my next project.

 

[RiggsMcClane]

Re: Silver Surfer Bust - Sculpt Finished

Thanks for all the comments guys. I posted this on another site but forgot to do it here. The whole point of the bust was to have it ready for a con and for the Silver Surfer himself, Doug Jones. I wasn't at the con for very long but what time I spent there was at Dougs table. I really can't say enough about the guy. He was very involved and interested in all of his fans. His reaction to the bust was awesome and he immediately pointed out similarities it had to the movie. He even hesitated to sign it. lol

The whole thing made my day if not my year. If you guys get a chance to meet him, do it. You won't regret it.

 

[Colossus601]

Holy crap...Not only is he a great sculpt he is also....HUGE!!!
My wife and I met Ron Pearlman a few years ago at a Star Trek convention in Tulsa and he could not have been a 'nicer' guy.....my wife asked him to say "holy crap".....he smiled,looked right at her and said it...it was great and funny as "hell" boy we had a lotta Fun that day...heh heh.Its always great when these actors are genuinely happy to see you and not just lookin for the exit. G Del Toro is also another who makes time for Fans.
Again Great Sculpt.....Mr.McClane BRAVO!!!

 

[RiggsMcClane]

I guess I never mentioned the actual size. He stands around twelve and a half inches with the base. I remember when Ron came through. I didnt get a chance to go but wish I had now. It's awesome knowing Abe and Hellboy are so personable. hehe