Welcome to Painted Portrait, a new Interview series focusing on traditional artists worth keeping and eye on. Painted Portrait interviews aim to give the community more insight into talented traditional artists and how they came to be successful with their art. Today we are interviewing scenceable who is a sculptor.
Thank you for allowing me to interview you, let's start off by having you introduce yourself.
Hi! My name is Janine, I'm 22 years old, living in Ontario, Canada.
How many years ago did you begin sculpting and what got you interested in this medium?
I started sculpting around the end of 2007. I had been browsing deviantart looking at breyer customs and came across original sculptures others had made. I had never heard of polymer clay and had assumed you needed a huge kiln to sculpt. I decided to try it out and have been hooked ever since!
How long, on average, does it take you to complete one of your sculptures?
From sketching to photographing, I would estimate that it takes me between 15 and 25 hours to do each one. It depends on the subject, pose, and how much a given sculpture feels like cooperating with me! I can usually do equine and cervine fairly quickly because I'm more familiar with them.
Which tools do you use when sculpting?
I have to use an exacto knife while sculpting, that one is a necessity for me. I also have a set of metal dental type tools that I like a lot. I also have a set of rubber tipped clay shapers that I use with a bit of oil, those are great for small details like nostrils and eye lids. I usually use the metal tools for larger detailing, like muscles and overall shape, and the rubber tipped shapers for the final, smooth detailing.
Sculpture is not the only medium you create in, have you found that working with a range of mediums has benefitted you?
I think it's beneficial to be able to draw (both in pencil and photoshop) as it helps in the planning stages for sculptures. I've also had cases where I had trouble getting the proportions correct on a sculpture so would photograph it, and then draw over it in photoshop to see where I needed to make alterations. Personally I like to try different mediums just for fun, because you never know what you might end up enjoying. That's how I got into sculpture in the first place!
Are there any tutorials, your own or from others, which you've found useful?
Here are some of mine and a link to SovaeArt's sculpting tutorials!
My sculpting tutorial: fav.me/d1hlgrc
My Baking Tutorial: fav.me/d41ooc6
My “hairing” tutorial: fav.me/d3dbutv
Indigo-Ocean’s Tutorials: indigo-ocean.deviantart.com/ga…
What tips do you have for other aspiring artists?
When I first started sculpting I was really set on having to finish each piece. The problem was most of what I was creating had significant issues and instead of fixing them I just moved on to a new thing. Something I do often now, that I never used to do, was to "sketch" in clay; just practice muscles and structure without the stress of having to finish or bake the piece. I think people get caught up in having spent x amount of hours on a certain piece, especially when starting out, because often when learning something new you aren't getting the quality you want from the hours you put in. Just think, every hour you spend sculpting is spent learning, whether you ever complete the piece or just pull the clay all off at the end and start over. Try to do something new or better with each piece, do research, look at references, and don't get caught up in hours.
Is there anything you'd like to say in closing?
Thanks for the interview! The only other tip I can think of at the moment is to make your armature as close to the skeleton of whatever you're making as possible. It makes it much easier to sculpt muscles in the proper place when the "bones" are in the correct place!
