This weekend I attended the NOVA Open Wargaming Convention in Crystal City, VA. I bought a day pass for Saturday, and tickets to two seminars. I also entered several works in the Capital Palette painting competition. I had a fantastic time, both meeting and talking with other hobbyists, and learning from the pros.
The first seminar I attended was Freehand Painting, taught by Chris Dubuque (aka Jawaballs), a middle school art teacher and award-winning miniature painter. He showed us how he freehands some common wargame emblems, then handed out primed cardboard for us to practice on, giving us tips, answering questions, and showing us anything else we wanted to see. I painted a scroll, angel wings, and a skull. I really took a lot from this class, and look forward to applying it to future projects.
The next seminar was Basing Miniatures, taught by Justin McCoy of Secret Weapon Miniatures. He talked about how to do various effects, showed us the best (and worst) basing materials, and stepped us through construction of an urban display base. Then he walked us upstairs to the Capital Palette display case to talk about composition. Again, it was a terrific learning experience, and well worth it.
I returned Sunday night to pick up my entries and attend the Awards Ceremony, which covered all the gaming tournaments and Capital Palette. There were three divisions, with three categories in each, with prizes for the top three in each category. I came away with a gold, two silvers, and a bronze:
I won some really nice prizes, including a Grex XN Airbrush, a Secret Weapon Miniatures gift certificate, a 6-disc DVD set of Jawaballs instructional videos, rare earth magnets, resin bases, a t-shirt, dice, palettes, and brushes, plus a beautiful trophy shaped like the Washington Monument.
Official Photos of NOVA Open can be found here.
I managed to get this one photo of the mini that won Best in Show. It was beautifully painted!
Congratulations! Jobs well done. I Love You SOOOOOOOO Much!
Thanks, Mom!
Well done, Joy. I knew St. Pat was awesome! I’m a bit surprised that “Inharmonious” didn’t place higher.
Thank you, Andy!
First, this wasn’t an open judging system, where all the gold-quality models get gold, all the silver-quality models get silver, etc. At Capital Palette, only the top 3 in each category won anything at all. I think if all the same models were judged in an open system, all the winners here would have won gold medals.
It also meant some really nice entries went away empty-handed, which is a real shame. Perhaps they only award the top 3 because there are valuable prizes involved, and they can only afford to give away so much stuff. Still, I think honorable mention certificates or something would have been appreciated by non-winning entrants that deserved them.
Second, if I were to judge my diorama, acknowledging right off the bat that I can’t possibly be truly objective about it, I would say this:
The painting is high quality, but not the best. The children were really only speed-painted, and all of the figures could have been improved with more time devoted, as I would have given if each one were the only model on a base by itself.
The basing also is lacking. The bricks should have been constructed one at a time and built into an actual wall. The door is very basic, and the knob and hinges are out of scale. The handrail is also oversized, and I’m still not completely sold on the OSL. The black sides should have been straighter, not bowing out like they do. The freehand carpet, book cover, wall art, and graffiti I think are good.
The one thing this piece really has going for it is the composition. The stairs draw the eyes up to the landing, and the posture of the police add real menace and tension, as does the calm stare of the mom with the knife held behind the doorframe, and the children huddled out of sight. The detailed symbolism and the message of the work are clear without hitting you over the head. I think that is where the diorama’s real strength lies.
Now, for the contest, I can’t remember what the gold entry was, but I’m sure it was better than my diorama. The judges were highly professional. I’m so grateful and flattered that they considered any of my entries worthy!
Hi, Joy ~
When we talked before the con, I had no idea how much fun it would be watching you work and having you win so much in the Capital Palette. You helped raise the bar for the competition this year … I heard guys change their minds about entering after seeing some of the displayed models! I’m “told” all our winners will be uploaded to CoolMiniOrNot tonight. Hope it’s not just a rumor. Enjoy … expect you back in 2014!
Thanks, Laurie! I had a great time, and look forward to going again next year!
Congratulations on the win, Joy! Well deserved against some strong competition. I would love to see your work in hand–perhaps next year…
Andy has been trying to get me to Reapercon for years. He even threatened to have me kidnapped ninja-style and brought there! We’ll see. I’ve never been to a show that wasn’t local.