SMOKEIN!

The latest product from the increasingly skilled hands of David Trelfer is a 1:1 rendition of "The Mask". Based on the version in the hit Jim Carrey film it represents the ancient wooden mask that falls into the hands of the hapless Stanley Ipkiss and transforms him into the film's deeply disturbed hero. Dave has done an excellent job of representing both the wood of the mask with deeply engraved grain and patterns and the metal nosepiece complete with rivets and Loki's rune.

The Mask comes well cast in grey resin by Jason Andrews with the inside given a coat of black paint. There were a few air bubbles in the casting, most of which could have been left as part of the weathering of the wood. However, I mixed up a batch of Milliput and settled down to watch the TV with some of my sculpting tools, filling the more obvious holes as I went along. Once that had hardened I did a bit of sanding down followed by the obligatory bath in warm soapy water, I used an old toothbrush to make sure all the crevices were cleaned out

A quick coat of grey automotive primer and then time to start painting. I mixed up a basic dark wood mix using burnt umber, raw and burnt sienna and black. Using the largest nozzle on my trusty Aztek airbrush I gave the whole wooden area a thorough coat. I then altered the base colour with more burnt umber and some red and sprayed selected sections, trying to keep a consistent run through the grain. I did the same with a batch with added green. Finally I added some more black and shaded the eye sockets, mouth and round the edge. The whole thing was then left to dry.

Taking a tip from David Fisher, I gave the whole thing a light coat of Testor's Dullcote and then, using a very dark brown, washed the whole thing thoroughly to bring up the grain. Another blast of Dullcote and it was drybrushing time. Using lighter versions of the three base colours I highlighted the grain further, basically carrying on until it looked about right. An extra light shade was drybrushed along the brow ridges and chin to add a little more emphasis.

Turning to the metal section, Dave has given this part of the mask an excellent distressed look. I mixed Humbrol Matt Black, Silver and Satin Black to give a dark gunmetal shade. I then used Matt Black and Silver for shading, using a darker tone along the sides and a somewhat lighter one on the various marks and indents. I used almost pure matt Black to emphasise the runic symbol at the top of the Mask. Highlights were done with a Satin Black and Silver mix. . To add a bit of contrast I mixed some Antique Bronze into the basic metal tone and used it on the rivet heads.

The end result is very satisfactory and I'm very impressed with this model of an unusual subject.

Gary Stratmann