Art outside of miniatures

My painting table still sits stagnating. Even my sketchbook has sat idle for more than a week. It rarely goes unused for more than a couple days at a time, but it's still nice to have an alternative form of art hobby outside of painting miniatures.

I think it's a good idea to have hobbies, artistic or otherwise, other than painting minis. The imagination needs stimulation when the minis become boring, I hate not having something to do when I don't know what to paint (or when I simply don't feel like painting.)

Here are some things I've done to pass the time (not recently, just in general.) The first is Mr. Monkey Head. I sculpted him out of Sculpey when I first started trying it out. He turned out fantastic. I keep him around to curse my enemies.

He was fun to make, and I got some OK practice painting over large areas. (He's a little larger than a racquetball.)

This is another animal for my totem. I call him Voody Bear. He was actually quite easy to put together.

I started with a regular Teddy bear and painted the brown patches on him. After the paint had dried, I sewed the stitched along the edges of the patches using heavy white thread.

The pins are made from wooden spheres attached to long brass pins. Yes, I sharpened them so I can use them; this isn't a kid's toy ... well, not TOO much of a kid, anyway.

Voody bear sits on the shelf keeping an eye on everything while the master is out. On some days, he's the subject of some of my sketches and paintings, mostly because he's easy to paint.

So, until I get back to the painting table (or the sketchbook, which I'm going to try today,) enjoy Monkey, Voody and this watercolor painting of Voody walking in the rain. Or get off your lazy ass and paint some minis! (I'm speaking to myself mostly :)