dark sword DSM7411 Gorgon

[Sanael 13872]

Got a little bored with the half-finished things on my desk (which explains why they're all half finished and over two years old... Or eight years, in one case...), So I decided I'd start on something I've wanted to paint to a high level for a long time.

Jeff Grace did a magnificent job sculpting this snake lady, and offering a lot of wonderful opportunity for painters. Although I love love looooooove Marike Reimer's subtly colored studio paint job, I wanted something with a bit more color... Beautiful as they are, Diamondbacks aren't the only snakes in the world, and I like snake-folk that aren't just Brown or green.

 

So I'm talking inspiration from the lovely Redbellied Snake, a small species of the Eastern USA. Maybe too docile a species to expect as a Gorgon, but I don't mind. Look at the color!

So the plan is to go with the highly saturated red-orange of her scutes, abdomen and face, the relatively dull brown of her back, and a pale bluey green for her dress (I suppose the dress is more or less a chiton, but the more I've looked at it, the more it starts looking like a peplos with sleeves and a very small himation...I dunno). I also intend transparency on the garment, which is why I stayed inside the lines about as well as a kindergartner on Red Bull.

 

This is about 15 minutes of work, that's all I had during lunch today. I also did not write down my paints, so I'll get that formula tomorrow. I am super excited about that red-orange, though!

[Glitterwolf 156333]

That's a beautiful snake!

Good choice!

[Sanael 13872]

Ok! More basecoat work. She has little tiny scales that collect air bubbles like they're going out of style, so the brown coat took longer than I would've liked. 

That's straight Powderburn Brown, one of my favorite browns (that I don't use too often). I chose this brown to go alongside the red because it's a little cooler than my usual go-to Blackened Brown, with a hint of greenishness to it. I think it was a Reapercon color.

 

The plan for her spine is to tone down the red with glazes of brown. Only the edges of the spine scales will remain red, to create a similar pattern of two parallel dorsal stripes as seen on some examples of the Redbellied Snake.

 

Her nest of hairsnakes will follow a similar pattern to her body, in that they will all be ventrally red and dorsally brown. It may wind up looking like a dye job in which her roots are not only showing, but glowing... If it's too weird, I have other options.

 

And, since I didn't get it yesterday, the red-orange on her is about 3:1 Carrot Top Red to Garnet Red.

[Pingo 107966]

Ooh, that is a beautiful sculpt.

 

Did it require much pinning? I’ve had some ... adventures with Dark Sword female arms ...

[Sanael 13872]

Just now, Pingo said:

Ooh, that is a beautiful sculpt.

 

Did it require much pinning? I’ve had some ... adventures with Dark Sword female arms ...

 

Umm.

 

So, memory is fuzzy because I assembled and primed her about... five? years ago... She's been knocked about in a couple of different drawers and cases in that time, so I assume I pinned her bow, because it's still attached! Her join is at the wrist, and I think there's one between her body and her tail on the base.

 

I use E18 steel guitar string for pins, so even on Darksword minis I can find room. It's just slow, careful work with a short drill bit in the pin vise.

[Glitterwolf 156333]

Good progress!

[Sanael 13872]

Not a ton today.

 

I made a comparison sheet to determine what color I want for her garment:

 

... And I decided on ghostly Moss...

 

... And now I'm second guessing that decision. The Ghostly Moss is a bit day-glo and I don't know that the Snowdrift White cuts that quality enough. I do like the pale teal of the Moss, though, so I may just try a glaze of something (like the Peacock Green) to desaturate the neon. We'll see.