Posted: November 2012 by Tal Peleg.

 

I’m very proud to introduce my second sculpture ever, and the first time I sculpted a full figure in 1/4 scale, which I have been working on since August 2012. Dante towers to 20” height from base all the way to the top. It’s a big jump from my first piece of a small crude Batman bust.

 

Since I was only familiar with water based clay, I sculpted the figure from the ground up, without an armature. From a professional stand point, this takes extra effort as water based clay dries out and hardens / shrinks in the process, so there isn't a lot of room for error; I had to rush out a solid and good looking pose early on and then start closing in on the lower end detail. Without prior practice with water based clay, it can go wrong quickly with cracks that build from within - a struggle to maintain - which is partially why Dante is all hollow all around the torso and the head. All the gear and clothing features are oil based clay, which made it possible to get the detail that’s otherwise impossible with water based clay.

 

There’s been a lot of trial and error, both in sculpting and painting. Having a full-time day job also made the process take significantly longer to accomplish. 

 

This is my own rendition of the model while retaining most of the recognizable features. I sculpted Dante with longer hair, massive physique, different armor, as well as added potions and cross ribbons. I also thought the red bands hanging down from his shoulders looked far more appealing and cape / “wings” like, than them dangling down from the wrists like in the game model.

 

-Tal Peleg