"Conan the Conqueror" Painting tutorial, by Alex Castro

[Elia Cid]

Hi Everyone,

I have been waiting, as I’m sure many of you, painters, collector and Frank Frazetta fans, for years have waited for this moment in our industry, for the arrival of the masters iconic work of art “ Conan the Conqueror” recreated in full glory in 3D sculptured by the masterful hands of Claybrun Moore.

My hopes are that at the end of this work in progress, I can inspire as many of you as I can, to pick up an airbrush/a handbrush and start to paint or re-paint your statues and figure masterpieces, using my system of painting that has worked for me. I would encourage you not to limit youself with my way of painting but to explore new concepts, methods and techniques, in this wonderful art form!

That being said, before I get in trouble or step on any toes, the disclaimer: This work in progress and any comparison I make to the factory paint job on this statue, or original painting is for demonstrational purposes only, to show how my work and style of painting are different. That being said, the typical factory paint job on the products from SC Moore Studio are among the best in the industry.

The intended purpose of my step-by-step how to is to assist and promote the art form of painting, re-painting, statues/ figures to a wider audience on this forum such as modelers, painters and collectors, fans both nationally and internationally.

I would also like to give thanks to Master Frank Frazetta for making this all possible. Meeting him has been one of the high points in my career as a painter. I would also like to acknowledge Claybrun Moore, SC Moore Studio for sculpturing and producing this fine work of art in 3D. I would also like to thank Statue Forum for supporting and promoting our industry over the years, as pioneers and leaders of this art from.

Thank you, for your encouraging words and support over the years,

Alex

Frank Frazetta’s "Conan the Conqueror"


My layout board of enlargements done on Adobe Photoshop

The Painting Strategy:
My statue is due to arrive any day now since my collector has indicated the he has received the invoice and it will be drop ship to me directly.

In the meantime I wanted to go over some points.

I would have liked to have this figure in an unpainted kit version for this painting project, which would have made my life a lot easier. However, when my collector requested an unpainted version, it was declined by SC Moore Studio. I'm not sure of the reason.

Dismantling and Striping:
Dismantling where ever possible or painting around it will be a challenge. I will probably strip the paint of some sections, if not all, depending on the relief of the details. Keep in mind that paint removal will also reveal many possible flaws like air holes, and other issues that are not visible with the paint. My point is that you don’t have to strip the entire statue to have a successful paint job! My painting approach will be my original style of painting statutes but I will base it on exclusively on the Master Frank Frazetta’s painting of “Conan the Conqueror” known as Berserker.

Analyze the Original:
One of the first things I do is analyze the original painting in detail, looking for any real differences in the statue version and the original painted version.That being said one thing that stood out immediately was the fact the scabbard or dagger on Conan’s back is missing. I haven't seen on the company's pictures or promotions. However, it may be in the box. I'lll keep you posted. Now there are two ways around this: one is to contact SC Moore studio for a dagger, or sculpt or cast your own. I also noticed that Conan is looking down and a little to the left. This is important because it allows the viewer to see some of the whites in the upper part of the eyes, which adds shock value and focuses the eyes into a more intense Berserker look! His skin tone has a very unique pale color to it unlike the normal flesh on the other Conan paintings.

Creating your Pallet:
I take a digital picture of the original painting and put it in Adobe Photoshop, which I enlarge to the point the pixels are large enough for me to print out and make swatches to develop my palette colors. Once I have my pallet figured out, I go back and try to analyze the light and tone values: true colors used, reflective values and color effects.

These are just some the things that I will be getting into more detail as I get to the actual work in progress.

Stay tuned. I let you know when they statue arrives.

[warhead]

Looking forward to this WIP, always informative and interesting.

[bdwave]

Thank you sir for sharing this with us!

[Elia Cid]

Hi folks ,
Sorry for the delay, I just heard from Shelley, she is shipping the statute Monday to me , I figure three days to PA the earliest Wednesday the latest Friday!
Thanks for staying tune in!
Alex

[protector2814]

I've just read this thread and am very excited to read what is next. I've had my Conqueror for a few days and literally walk into my display room several times, daily to just stare at it.

Wish I just had a thread of painter's talent to attempt something like this but I'll have to be satisfied with both Alex' upcoming posts and the already excellent factory paint the statue has.

This'll be F-U-N!

[isculpt]

Woooh....love these things.

[Elia Cid]

Thanks Shelley,

Have the tracking number , UPS says Tuesday!

Looking forward to getting started !!

Thanks for hanging everyone!

Alex

[Magik]

I just got my Conqueror statue yesterday and love it... even with a common factory paint job. Can't wait to see the in-progress pics and works from a true professional painter.

[Elia Cid]

Hi everyone,
The piece arrived on schedule. It was well packaged in one large box which contained the collector's art box with the statue. Note, care should be taken in opening these boxes, in particular the art box. Any damage will have an impact on the value of the piece particularly to collectors! In my case, I have to handle all of this packaging carefully, not just for the collectible value but because I shipping it back to the collector safely and in pristine condition! The statue was well protected, suspended in styrofoam. The axe and marble base were separate. No document or certificate was included. This would have been a nice touch. My collector's statue was 33 out of 1500, which is pretty low.

Over the years, I have come to appreciate master Frank Frazetta for his subtle gestures and nuances in his dynamic forms and explosive anatomy in many of his action compositions that have been very difficult and elusive even for some of the very best artist to capture! The following are my initial impression and observations. Please note that these are my subjective views and I have neither discussed or consulted with Frazetta or Clayburn in any aspect of the creation and manufacturing of this statue. That being said, I'm not privy to any more information then any one else on this forum!
"Conan the Conqueror”

The original work on the left appears to have a tongue. In the statue the tongue is inside the mouth. The original work shows a dagger or a scabbard on Conan's back for his sword.
This is not present on the statue.

Please see part #2 just below thanks,

Alex

[Elia Cid]

A strap over Conan's right thigh is missing on the status.

The statue at first glance is impressive. My hat goes off to Clayburn and the fine folks at CS Moore Studio for producing such a fine statue. The anatomy on the figure is fantastic and very close to the original painting. Attention to detail is obvious throughout and a very decent factory paint job overall. Most collectors would be satisfied with this statue straight from the box. But there are some collectors that want to take it to the next level of art and realism and it is on this level where some of the seemingly ok issues are not good enough and need to be repainted to bring it in line and closer and the original Frazetta panting.

The collector did request a non-painted statue, but he was told it was not available. Therefore, from my point of view of re-painting this status, I have come across some problems. The figure does not come off the horse, nor does the sword or shield. It has a lot of delicate parts protruding, like the helmet, sword, shield, feet, horse's head and tail. The rings for leather straps are welded closed will have to be cut and replaced. The piece is awkward and heavy to handle and will require lots of foam and additional padding to be able to lay it down. The face has air holes: one right under the left eye and one at the very tip of the nose.

There are some items that I felt were missing from the piece. I'm sure there are good reasons for this. In the original painting there appears to be a tongue sticking out of Conan's mouth. The statue has a tongue inside the mouth. A dagger or a scabbard in Conan's back for his sword is not present. A strap over Conan's right thigh is missing.

I had my assistant Floyd Nixon create a mock scale tongue, which I painted to see how the statue's facial impression would be altered. The change was quite dramatic. When I finish the face I'll post both versions with the tongue and without the tongue and take a poll from the viewers and the Frazetta fans.

I will start photographing the piece from every angle for reference. Then I'll start disassembling the rings and straps. I'll mask out Conan and the mist so that I can paint the horse first. The point here is to start from the ground up. My first focus will be the horse which then will be my foundation or should I say my platform to paint Conan.

For a rare article from a Historex catalogue written by French master painter Eugene Leliepvre that's no longer in print and has been an inspiration to me, please view my website at http://alexcastro.com/how-to-paint-h...y-alex-castro/ This article will instruct you on how to paint horses.

Stay tuned for the painting of the horse.

Alex