Hela: Prep IV - The Head

The main thrusts of this step will be 1) fitting and posing; and 2) the sculpting of Hela's iconic-- and elaborate!--mask/cowl.

The head has been tentatively repositioned and fitted; however, this phase is an approximation by design as the position and the fit of the head will be impacted by the addition of the cowl. In the meantime, I have begun to lay the foundation of the mask itself, being very conscious of how, in the absence of a bare face, this will determine the character of the piece. 

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

Hela: Prep III - The Torso

The torso requires some "enhancement" to capture the voluptuous malevolence of the subject. As bench time is extremely limited this week, I figured I'd spend the available time "roughing in" the mods.

So far so good. Most of the work still lies before me, but a foundation has been more or less es- tablished. This is very much like sculpting an original: once key landmark structures are in place, the supporting details should go relatively quickly. 

Stay tuned. . .

UPDATE 11.10.16. . . The cups and extended gore have been roughed-in: the resculpting of the costume can now begin in earnest. . .

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

Hela: Prep II - The Cloak

The moment of truth has arrived: assembly of the cloak!

This is a rather involved process. The steps taken are as follows:

1. Attached collar, and extended overall length--height--of same.
2. Extensive reduction of the upper inner surfaces of the cloak.
3. Re-contouring of said surfaces to accommodate the torso.
4. Fitting the torso.
5. Attaching the L&R sections of the cloak with the torso in situ.
6. Filling and finishing.   

All but the final step have been completed.

The bust is now comprised of 3 pieces: head, torso, and cloak.

More to follow. . .

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

Hela: Review & Prep I

Hela has been one of my favourite female characters in comics since she was introduced by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1964. With the announcement that Cate Blanchett had been cast in the role in the forthcoming Thor: Ragnarok (2017), it was time to bring the Asgardian Goddess of Death to "life".

Hela has been largely 'avoided' in our world. That being said, the best rendition of Hela in minia- ture ever was a gk out of the UK (you can see her here).  While I have at least 2 Hela projects in mind, I wanted to start with a bust. And as there are no gk busts of the "Mistress of the Dark- ness", I dug out a bust of Moondragon from the same source as the Jones' "Vampire Bat", Harley Quinn, etc. Per usual, this bust is cast in my favourite PUR; however, in this instance, the casting--and the master!--are sub-par (B, at best). The master was relatively "unfinished": numer- ous areas required reduction; fingerprint elimination; etc.The castings had more air bubbles than we are used to seeing from this manufacturer; and all pieces experienced mold-shift. Finally, the design of the cloak leaves MUCH to be desired (see below). Nonetheless, for the iteration of Hela I had in mind, the bust is perfect!

The bust is cast in six pieces: head, torso/cloak, collar, L&R sections of cloak, and pedestal (nb: I did not receive the pedestal in my sample). The greatest weakness of this offering is that the torso and cloak are cast in one piece. Frankly, this is unacceptable unless you are willing to settle for a pre-paint look to your completed project. In spite of seeing one exceptional rendition (see link to bust above), I am hard pressed to see how the L&R portions of the cloak can be attached and finished (especially the inner seams) after the torso and inner surface of the cloak have been painted.

As I said, UNACCEPTABLE! So the first order of business was separating the torso from the cloak. This was accomplished by deep-scoring the perimeter of the torso with a tapered-cone bit and then "chiselling" the torso out. I will be the first not to recommend such an extreme approach unless you have a considerable amount of experience with resins and are very familiar with their physical properties once cured.

Now, I can proceed with the assembly and finishing of the cloak; and the torso. All major subas- semblies can now be painted individually and then easily assembled once dry. . .

More to follow. . .

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003