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Roy Nottage
Thanks for the feedback! Even though Bodem was later revised to the axe shape, it was still interesting to consider the method you outlined initially with the framework. I definitely need to practice the principles of these block-ins more regularly. When I've tried 'speed sculpting', it's so easy to fly off the path early on. Particularly with digital - starting with a default sphere and limitless tools has often been a one way ticket to some seriously messed up blob faces.
Andrew Joseph Keith
yeah that structure underneath can make all the difference when it comes to the portrait.
Roy Nottage
Here for the ear! For this one I kinda wanted to get a suppleness across - which I don't think I really managed with the other features so far. Pretty happy with it overall, except for the back. Struggled with the conch and the back + underside in general. Couldn't mentally relate the internal ear to the external shape of the conch. Although next time I would perhaps stick holes right through the clay early on to gauge the thickness of certain areas.
DANI DIKMAN
11mo
looks amazing !
Kay Neumann
Excellent!
DANI DIKMAN
Hi everyone.  my first assignment
Roy Nottage
These have a lot of character to them!
Roy Nottage
Finally finished up the skull assignment. For reference imagery I was predominantly focusing on skull that I found on Pinterest. Although, the reference teeth didn't appear to be correct (?) - so looked at other reference for those. The teeth also took way longer than I was anticipating. There was a lot of quite heavy revising, even late on, but overall I'm pretty happy with the outcome.
Roy Nottage
Ok, so I really should be cracking on with my next fresh assignments. But I thought I'd share where I ultimately took my skull model to. I will use this as a base for the face and neck muscles assignment. I enjoyed this project far more for having started with real clay, felt like a real journey.
Roy Nottage
Thanks for these great variation of armature approaches! Although this particular tutorial was regarding polymer clay, just thought I'd add a note about using aluminium foil with oil-based clay. Personally I've found if you're planning to reclaim and reuse the clay down the line, oil-based clay doesn't always peel away from the foil without it ripping. This can leave very small aluminium shrapnel in the clay. Which isn't ideal if (like me) you reheat oil-based clay in the microwave. So in that scenario, I tend to add an external layer of a different material to the foil (like sellotape) before applying the clay. Just so it parts from the clay easier.
Andrew Joseph Keith
Yes this is a great point! that's why I usually use a paper and masking tape armature for oil based clays.
Roy Nottage
Life size mouth assignment. Decided to ignore the facial hair and focus on the facial forms. Not sure I pushed the dental mound out far enough. And it was tough getting inside the lips. Feel like my noses are getting better though 👃.
Scott Camazine
Lovely work Roy. I agree with your self-critique that the dental mound does not protrude enough, or perhaps the nose protrudes too far. I like the final smooth surface you achieve. Are you getting that just with tool work, or are you using oil or a solvent as well?
Roy Nottage
Did most of this assignment quite a while back, but got massively waylaid by other stuff. Went to finish it today, then remembered it was mostly just to sort out the excessive moustache... so I decided to leave it as is and post it. Move onto the next assignment... for the mouth - where moustache will attack again.
Andrew Joseph Keith
Nicely done! this is exactly what I like to see when it comes to these facial feature studies. Keep it up.
Roy Nottage
Pretty happy with the side profile overall, but front feels iffy. Think I extended too far out under the eyes, and eye shape and nose are bit off. I definitely found it tricky to focus on a 'square' of the face, seemed somehow like proportions were harder to gauge. Although chipping away at this in work lunch breaks meant I could move it forward, I think it would have benefited from sitting down and properly commiting to it for longer sessions.
Andrew Joseph Keith
Looking great! really well done! yes isolating an area of the face can be a bit tricky but its a great exercise and this one is looking really good. Keep going!
Roy Nottage
The content and format of Andrew's Portrait Sculpting course has been a really great way to break down a complex subject. It's made me feel a lot more confident in approaching the portrait, and shown me new ways to tackle areas that I've previously struggled with. Getting feedback from Andrew himself has been really beneficial - highlighting those areas for improvement that I hadn't noticed. Very happy with the premium course content, and I look forward to progressing with it!
Andrew Joseph Keith
Thank you!
Roy Nottage
Hey Andrew, thanks for all the great feedback! And for covering so many. It does seem like a great exercise to try as a warm up / to familiarise with a person's face, before tackling a larger likeness of that person. Out of interest, do you ever do much in the way of 'front view' pancakes? Appreciate the profile probably offers more information as a basis for establishing the main proportions for likeness, but wondered if there was anything unique to learn from doing the front (or if it just presents more challenges). Perhaps an insight into a person's a-symmetry.
Andrew Joseph Keith
so when beginners start sculpting they usually want to start from the front but the problem with that is it's almost impossible to judge the depths of the facial features when observing someone from the front view. the profile is much more important to establish first and then when that is accurate we can move to the front view. You could try to do something similar from the front but the reason I focus on the profile is because it's much better for establishing a likeness and judging the depths of the features.
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