AK LEARNING 14: PINTURA DE FIGURAS DE ANIMALES

The fourteenth part of the learning series, devoted to animal figures

AK Learning is a series of thin learning booklets in which each part takes one theme and goes through it step by step. This volume deals with painting animal figures. The name of the item is written in Spanish, which matches the Spanish edition; the publisher brings out the same number of the series in an English version as well. The content is the same, what differs is the language it is explained in.

Why animals are a different discipline from soldiers

• Fur is not a smooth surface - the color is built up strand by strand in the direction of growth, not with an even coat
• The transitions have to be soft; sharp edges, which work on a uniform, come across as unnatural on an animal
• The shades of a coat are rarely pure - almost always they are broken browns and grays with a warm or a cool shift
• The eyes, the nostrils and the hooves or claws have a different surface and sheen from the rest of the body

Where it comes in useful

Horses with artillery and wagons, draft animals on dioramas, dogs in figure scenes, cattle in a rural setting. On a diorama the animal is often the first thing the viewer looks at, and badly painted fur spoils the impression of the whole scene more than an inaccurate uniform.

Who the guide is for

For figure modelers and builders of dioramas who have so far built only vehicles and human figures, and for those who want to master soft transitions on a small area.

This is a printed publication. Figures, paints and brushes are not part of it.