Painting a figure of Túrin

[Alatar]

I'm painting a figure of Túrin for Voronwë and I want to get it as accurate as possible colour-wise. The figure looks like this:



It looks to me like he's wearing the Dragon Helm of Dor-Lómin but I have no idea about the colouring for his clothing or Horse. So, can anyone provide me with the info I need? My gut feeling is that this should be predominantly black, with a a silver of mithril colour on the chainmail. What about the Dragon Helm? Was it black or metallic coloured? Any idea what colour horse Túrin rode?

Thanks,
Martin

P.S. I'm sure Voronwë could answer all this is he weren't out of action!

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Not completely out of action.

Unfortunately, I really have no idea. To the best of my recollection, Tolkien was never specific about any of it.

On the other hand, since I have no particular expectations, I won't be disappointed. I'm sure whatever you do will be great!

I'm looking forward to it!

[Jnyusa]

That is one cool statue, Al!

Jn

[Rowanberry]

I don't remember that Tolkien himself ever described the colouring of Túrin's armour in a detailed manner, just that his sword was black (I should think that, it was the colour of today's gun metal). I think that, one good suggestion would be Ted Nasmith's Túrin Bears Gwindor to Safety from his new Silmarillion illustrations.

[Alatar]

I looked at that pic Rowan, but it just struck me as a little Nazgûl-y. I'm thinking of a predominantly Black and Silver look, with maybe a touch of Gold and maybe a little red. In Tolkien, silver or mithril seems to be the colour of "purity" while gold is more corrupt. I can't provide chapter and verse to support that feeling but its a gut reaction. As such I think Túrin as a flawed hero would have a touch of gold in the design. Hmm, perhaps Ted Nasmith had the same idea now that I think of it...

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Al, I definitely think you are in the direction in saying that it should be prodominently black. There is this statement from "Of Tuor and His Coming to Gondolin" in UT from when Tuor and my namesake see Túrin and the waters of Ivrin:

And as they waited one came through the trees, and they saw that he was a tall Man, armed, clad in black, with a long sword drawn; and they wondered, for the blade of the sword was also black, but the edges shone bright and cold.

[MithLuin]

I just scared up some quotes about Túrin's description, and this is what I found:

The Helm:

"grey steel adorned with gold"
"gilded image of the head of Glaurung"
"overwritten with runes"

Túrin in Doriath:

He wore a grey cloak over mail.
His clothing was brown and grey and green (woodsy/rangery) and was unadorned with jewels and the like.
He kept the elvish mail when he became an outlaw.
(This description matches Beleg's, btw)

Physical description of Túrin (from The Lays of Beleriand):

"dark-haired and pale-skinned, with grey eyes"

The quote from Voronwë was also on my list .

As far as a horse....I do not recall any instance when he is said to ride a horse. It would have to be in Nargothrond, though (or maybe Brethil)....other times he is explicitly on foot. So, choose whatever color you like . Nienor and Morwen travel with a company of elves who have horses, but that is the closest I can come....and I don't think the colors of those horses are described.

[Frelga]

Alatar, that's a cool statue!

I wonder about the mask in Nasmith's picture. Looks like something out of Scream to me. Is it supposed to look like that?

[Voronwë the Faithful]

It certainly doesn't match my impression of what it should look like.

[Alatar]

Luckily, the figure by Chris Tubbs puts the Likeness of Glaurung on the top of the helm, rather than as a visor.

[Alatar]

Ok, I finally got started on this.

Here's the initial figure unassembled:


This is the first pass. Rough colour scheme with no detailing or washes applied. I'm happy with the colour palette. There's enough Black to satisfy the description and I like the mix of Mithril and Gold. It seems to suit Túrin's pride somehow.




The horse will require a lot of work, particularly on the saddle, bridle and mane. Túrin himself is difficult to get at for many of the detailed parts. Bear in mind the figure stands less than an Inch and a half tall. I'll apply a wash to the armour and possibly drybrush a little gold or mithril on the greaves.

Anyway, that's tonights progress!

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Wowsa!

[Erunáme]

This reminds me of the miniature art I've seen...such tiny details needed.

It's something I'd like to try!

[Alatar]

Ok. I took the initial strong colours and applied a "wash". This is basically a darker version of the colour, but in a very watery consistency. The idea is that it runs into all the cracks and crevices while flowing away from raised edges. This adds depth and texture, which is hard to do otherwise on such small figures.

Here I've applied a darker coat of Brown unevenly over the horse to give it a more genuine texture. I also put a darker wash on the Mane, Tail and in the shadowy areas. I also gave the horse black hooves, just to break up the colour a little. I then applied an Armour wash to the gold and silver sections. This dulled those right down and gave them a much better texture.





I then finished up with a drybrushing technique. This is effectively the reverse of a wash. You mix a lighter shade and rub most of it off the brush using a tissue or cloth. Then flick or drag it over the surfaces you want highlighted. The paint will catch on the raised surfaces giving a much more detailed look to the model.





All that's left now is to paint the base. Voronwë, would you prefer it left Matt as it is or with a grass texture? It's a purely aesthetic choice.

Hope you like it.

Alatar

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Like it? LIKE IT? No, I don't like it.

I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!111

That is so incredible. Thank you so much.

As for the base, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, a grass texture sounds really cool. But I don't have a strong preference either way.

Wow!

[Erunáme]

What's a grass texture?

Are you going to paint the horses's eye or is it closed?

[Alatar]

A grass texture is simply a green base, washed with dark green, drybrushed with a little yellow. If I had any flock I would add that, but infortunately I don't.

I considered painting the eyes, but on closer inspection they looks closed to me. I think attempting to paint them would take from the model. Again, bearing in mind the scale of these, sometimes "less is more".

[Erunáme]

A grass texture is simply a green base, washed with dark green, drybrushed with a little yellow. If I had any flock I would add that, but infortunately I don't.

Do you have any models that have this texture as an example?

Again, bearing in mind the scale of these, sometimes "less is more".

True.

[JewelSong]

Alatar, I am totally in awe of your painting job - especially considering the teeny-tininess of the piece.

If I tried something like that, it would end up looking like a big, monochromatic blob!

[Voronwë the Faithful]

As for what it would have looked like if I had done it myself - well, the less said, the better.