Showcase: Banzai Jones Vignette for Charity

A few weeks ago I did this piece for a charity project. I'm sure you remember my earlier post about Project Alchemy and my partaking in it.

Well, the model is done, sent over to Project Alchemy HQ and ready to be raffled away to one of the great donators!

I aimed for recreating the style of classic GW vignettes whilst also adding a little contemporary touch. To me the multi-layered and slightly sinister look of old GW vignettes was the most appealing thing. There always was a something inexplicable and uncontrolable lurking in a small cavern, a dark corner or underground levels. Alien, mischievous, funny and dangerous at the same time.

Now I had this extremely stern-looking guy with this big guy and combat outfit with big, important badges on it. He's the perfect fit for what I had in mind with this project. He's standing guard, patrolling, keeping things in order, looking very much like he's on top of things (literally). 

Right underneath his boots stomping the surface though there are these little snotlings/gremlins/wotsits, having a good time. I sculpted the bigger guy sitting on some old rusty wheel, smiling, relaxing. His right leg is just dangling off the wheel, teetering a little.

The other little guy is holding on to one of the numerous roots coming through from the plants on the surface. That of course works pretty well as a little nod to these underground dwellers messing around with the stuff that goes on on the surface. And of course the little guy was a good opportunity to show some cheek. Somehow old-school goblins and exposed bottoms go together perfectly well. Blame Kev Adams I guess. Anyway, both these little green fellas were much fun to sculpt.

Charity Jones (as I renamed him) was good fun to paint too. Very straightforward and pretty much from the get-go I knew I would go with an adaption of the colour scheme of the 8th Necromunda regiment, 'the Spiders'. These huge badges on his helmet and back work perfectly well for making him look a bit more like he's an employee of a "private military contractor" or some sort of security guard, again reinforcing the contrast between Jones on the surface and the different world underneath him. 

The sculpt was a lot of fun to paint, I had a blast designing the whole vignette and of course my favourites are the little green guys.

If you go to Project Alchemy's page have a look at the prizes which are being raffled away. Really amazing stuff across the ages, so not just bits and pieces for the dyed in the wool Oldhammerer. The raffle lasts until the end of November if I remember correctly.

Hope you like him and remember - this could be yours if you donate (and help a good cause to boot!).