Text from Fictive Art-i-Facts Installation:
The Sentients are a very special class of object created in Thurmania. When not observed, they come to life. Imbued with their own will, they explore and interact with their environment. Like a genie and its lamp, they are closely tied to their vessel; they can never stray far from it since they need to instantly return to their frozen pose in the event of observation. Often manifesting their core emotions onto their vessel, they can’t help but express themselves showing each of their true natures. The Thurmanite is the source of their lifeforce, drawing their power from the perfectly lathe-turned symmetrical saucers or lids. In a special ritual, the painting of them brings them to life; the colors and painting approach in conjunction with their original form determining their nature and character.
TROLL ROCKY
This was the first piece I created just to enter the Painters Division of the annual ReaperCon MSP Open Competition in 2024, where it was awarded a Bronze Medal. As per the rules, “Entries in this division are judged for Difficulty, Workmanship, Painting Skill and Presentation with the primary focus on the Painting Skill.” For several years, I have been entering the ReaperCon competition but in the Open or Diorama categories with my “regular” artworks. Under the mentorship of Geoff Davis, it was a great experience to just focus on my miniature painting techniques along with creating a unique base for the piece. The miniature figure was created in 2023 in a “Bones Mash-up” workshop at ReaperCon, where piles of miniature figures are made available to cut apart and reassembled (which is an experience I highly recommend even if you aren’t interested in fantasy miniatures—it’s like playing with LEGO bricks except the bricks are monsters!). Often a first step in planning a painting approach for a miniature is the creation of its own fictitious narrative. Here is the story I created for Troll Rocky:
“Once upon a time, there was a wizard named Jeymis Thurmenus. His specialty was creating and growing new species of magical creatures. He didn’t believe in “monsters”—he just felt they were misunderstood beings. Inspired by the practice of breeding dogs for particular traits, he had successfully created the “Rocky” species of dragons, a smaller friendlier dragon: like a toy poodle, but a dragon. Knowing that trolls and humans were having a lot of trouble co-existing, he created the Troll Rocky, in hopes that they would thrive as successfully as his Rocky dragons.
Unfortunately, when Troll Rocky matured, his poisonous breath weapon manifested itself and Troll Rocky accidentally killed Jeymis Thurmenus. Overwhelmed with grief and shame, Troll Rocky ran away to live alone in isolation so that he would never hurt another being again. Now, Troll Rocky is terrified of contact with anyone and does his best to scare them away so that he won’t possibly harm them.”