Post by Pszito on Jan 23, 2014 1:55:00 GMT -5
Howdy Oath Forumites!
I am Nick Curtis, Pressganger in Vermont, painting enthusiast, dice-monger, Professional Body Piercer, and general nuisance to all fuzzy things. I would like to take a small moment to present some background and intended futures.
I was introduced to gaming, as I now understand it, when I was 5 years old by my older half-brother. We played Blood Bowl. The first time I cut off a star player minotaur's head, tossed the rest in a spiky pit trap, and proceeded to score a touchdown with helmeted trophy... I was hooked. I may have not understood the 'out of the box' rules and mechanics we were using when I was a kid but now one might easily infer the effect that had on my current hobbies. I quite easily decided to begin saving my $2 weekly allowance to venture up to Quarterstaff for my monthly purchase of metal men. Dragons, Giants, Oozes, and other giant creatures always got my dollar. I built model trains, cars, planes, and boats with my Dad on occasion. His workroom was both a household repair shop, gun room, and modeling station. With a little TV, one tiny window, high stools, and an array of tools fit for any job it was the quintessential man-cave of the 90s.
My actual brother and I then spent countless days growing up by passing time with board, card, and video games. Everything from Risk, seasons of Blood Bowl, Axis&Allies, Heroquest (which we made our own whole new rules system for), Battletech, Warhammer, Magic, D&D, Rifts, Warcraft, Civilization, Command & Conquer, on and on and on all the way to scratch built games just as any gamer's list does. After years of playing and painting whatever my fancy tickled I got seriously into 40k at age 14, pouring over the megalithic rulebook as school like a religious text. Tyranids were my calling with their intense look and alien nature. I racked up well over 5000 points of bugs over the next 7 years, meticulously cleaning, posing, and planning an epic army. Between my position then at Quarterstaff and all the other games I had diversified into there had been little time spent actually painting these aliens. I used to say that I 'modeled', not painted, figurines as it was a more accurate descriptor. Realizing the sheer volume of grey, black, and silver dudemens I had acquired I did what most of my fellow hobbyists would've done and got serious about painting. I began researching; articles, websites, videos, asking community members, and generally experimenting with what worked for me. At that time, there was little more than game company articles in magazines, the occasional how-to book, and a few poorly structured online groups as the notion higher artistry in miniature painting was only beginning to blossom. Sites like CoolMiniOrNot were in their infancy, bloggers were barely posting badly lit pictures of their weekend warrioring, and you certainly couldn't type 'how do I wet blend 'into youtube expecting to find anything useful. Right up until today I still tune into podcasts, watch videos, stalk forum ploggers, and the occasional artist technique article to inspire and refresh my hobby. I have also since gathered a strong interest in photography, dabbling tho it may be.
In the last 3 years I've been defining what works for my style of painting in the time that I have to devote to it. I am no full time artist, heck there are times when weeks will go by and I haven't applied paint to model. I currently use no airbrush and almost exclusively work with acrylic medium. My craft is still evolving. Remembering that I paint game pieces and rarely enter in painting competitions keeps me humble while refreshing my drive. I like pretty things but not more than the process limits fun. In that vein I always try to share the desire to raise the bar while never loosing sight of the main goal of any hobby; to relax and have fun despite how daunting painting may be at times.
It is my intent here, being both a compatriot-in-arms and a moderator of this Covenant, to inspire, share, and critique as openly as anyone needs. Please do not hesitate to ask for anything nor be shy to contribute your thoughts and experiences here, as I will. By the end of this year we shall have all grown with and because of what we put into this hobby. And this is just the beginning...
Here's a recent and holiday-infused picture of my face, so you know how to recognize a Pszito in the wild:
And here is a small portrayal of my painting progression from age 8 to present:
My most recently completed piece, (what i was doing just pre-oath): HARKEVICH, The Iron Wolf
Thank you for reading. Now... BACK TO PAINTING! ;-)
I am Nick Curtis, Pressganger in Vermont, painting enthusiast, dice-monger, Professional Body Piercer, and general nuisance to all fuzzy things. I would like to take a small moment to present some background and intended futures.
I was introduced to gaming, as I now understand it, when I was 5 years old by my older half-brother. We played Blood Bowl. The first time I cut off a star player minotaur's head, tossed the rest in a spiky pit trap, and proceeded to score a touchdown with helmeted trophy... I was hooked. I may have not understood the 'out of the box' rules and mechanics we were using when I was a kid but now one might easily infer the effect that had on my current hobbies. I quite easily decided to begin saving my $2 weekly allowance to venture up to Quarterstaff for my monthly purchase of metal men. Dragons, Giants, Oozes, and other giant creatures always got my dollar. I built model trains, cars, planes, and boats with my Dad on occasion. His workroom was both a household repair shop, gun room, and modeling station. With a little TV, one tiny window, high stools, and an array of tools fit for any job it was the quintessential man-cave of the 90s.
My actual brother and I then spent countless days growing up by passing time with board, card, and video games. Everything from Risk, seasons of Blood Bowl, Axis&Allies, Heroquest (which we made our own whole new rules system for), Battletech, Warhammer, Magic, D&D, Rifts, Warcraft, Civilization, Command & Conquer, on and on and on all the way to scratch built games just as any gamer's list does. After years of playing and painting whatever my fancy tickled I got seriously into 40k at age 14, pouring over the megalithic rulebook as school like a religious text. Tyranids were my calling with their intense look and alien nature. I racked up well over 5000 points of bugs over the next 7 years, meticulously cleaning, posing, and planning an epic army. Between my position then at Quarterstaff and all the other games I had diversified into there had been little time spent actually painting these aliens. I used to say that I 'modeled', not painted, figurines as it was a more accurate descriptor. Realizing the sheer volume of grey, black, and silver dudemens I had acquired I did what most of my fellow hobbyists would've done and got serious about painting. I began researching; articles, websites, videos, asking community members, and generally experimenting with what worked for me. At that time, there was little more than game company articles in magazines, the occasional how-to book, and a few poorly structured online groups as the notion higher artistry in miniature painting was only beginning to blossom. Sites like CoolMiniOrNot were in their infancy, bloggers were barely posting badly lit pictures of their weekend warrioring, and you certainly couldn't type 'how do I wet blend 'into youtube expecting to find anything useful. Right up until today I still tune into podcasts, watch videos, stalk forum ploggers, and the occasional artist technique article to inspire and refresh my hobby. I have also since gathered a strong interest in photography, dabbling tho it may be.
In the last 3 years I've been defining what works for my style of painting in the time that I have to devote to it. I am no full time artist, heck there are times when weeks will go by and I haven't applied paint to model. I currently use no airbrush and almost exclusively work with acrylic medium. My craft is still evolving. Remembering that I paint game pieces and rarely enter in painting competitions keeps me humble while refreshing my drive. I like pretty things but not more than the process limits fun. In that vein I always try to share the desire to raise the bar while never loosing sight of the main goal of any hobby; to relax and have fun despite how daunting painting may be at times.
It is my intent here, being both a compatriot-in-arms and a moderator of this Covenant, to inspire, share, and critique as openly as anyone needs. Please do not hesitate to ask for anything nor be shy to contribute your thoughts and experiences here, as I will. By the end of this year we shall have all grown with and because of what we put into this hobby. And this is just the beginning...
Here's a recent and holiday-infused picture of my face, so you know how to recognize a Pszito in the wild:
And here is a small portrayal of my painting progression from age 8 to present:
My most recently completed piece, (what i was doing just pre-oath): HARKEVICH, The Iron Wolf
Thank you for reading. Now... BACK TO PAINTING! ;-)
