Last week it was time! Figopedia was there! I was super excited to see the book and the minis on my doorstep and of course I spent the weekend thoroughly enjoying the book and all its content.
Of course I want to share my experiences, hence this review! Not only will I share my thoughts on the book, but also on the miniatures that came with it.
Little back story
Jérémie Bonamant Teboul is a French painter that is well known for his atmospheric pieces. To me, he also stood out because he often uses vibrant colours, sometimes in combination with de-saturated colours, and I really like that. A couple of years ago he was the star of the DVD “Miniature Painting with Jérémie Bonamant Teboul” and of course he is the owner of Figone, a company that manufactures their own line of boutique miniatures and also sells other minis through their website. A busy man he is!
In September 2014 the Kickstarter was initiated to fund the production of Figopedia, volume 1. This book focuses on a very important aspect of miniature painting: “Colour & Light”. The funding goals was reached soon and optional add-ons were available, such as a miniature and a T-shirt. Backers also received a complementary miniature for free.
I backed this option:
I received the Figopedia book and two miniatures: Queen of Death & Queen of Barbary. They were all sent in one big envelope, fitting through the mailbox. I have some doubts about this sending method, mostly in regards to the minis but I will come back to that later.
Thoughts about Figopedia
When opening the parcel I immediately noticed the sturdy quality of the book. The book has a soft cover that is plasticised so it doesn’t damage easily. The pages are of the right thickness. They have a somewhat satin finish, which is good: no problems with shiny pages and no colours lost because of th e mattness. The colours look really good, very vibrant. Also the pictures are (with few exeptions, but that is more due to the photo than the print) all sharp.
Content
So far the look of it. What about the content? Well, I am really happy with this book. It covers a large amount of information about light, contrast and colours and it is supported by great examples. Although not all information was new to me, especially after taking many workshops in mini painting, it is very concise and I did learn some new things but mainly re-emphasized some things that I had forgotten. I like how the information is build up in different chapters. The book starts with “Light & Shadow” were different lighting situations are discussed and how you can create certain atmospheres. The second part “The Alchemy of Colours” is all about contrasts and how you can use colours to emphasize certain parts of a miniature or create a harmonious piece. I enjoyed the part about the different properties of colours. One part I usually forget about is the saturation of colours some followers will recognize this as I paint a lot of my minis with saturated colours), so it was nice to be reminded of that.
Overall I really liked the examples used to demonstrate the theory (except from the one on page 36, I don’t understand it, but maybe that is just me). It is really striking how strong effects small changes can have, regarding contrast or extra highlights. The drawings were also really helpful to understand the text.
To sum it all up, I can definitely recommend this book to all miniature painters. If you are painting tabletop models, display models, as a beginner (I wish I read this when I just started painting) or as a advanced painter, there will be something for you!
Miniatures
Of course I also want to review the miniatures here, as that is what I usually review. Both minis are now available at Figone. They are made out of resin and are about 32mm in size. The miniatures are packed in a little plastic bag and were directly included in the big envelope with the book. Sadly, this has resulted in some damage of the minis L.
Queen of Death
Queen of Death is a mini sculpted by Stephane Camossetto. I added this miniature to the Figopedia Kickstarter as an add-on as I really liked the look of her. It is mostly a nude sculpt, with some pieces of armour and a snake to cover her intimate parts. I liked the balance in this piece, with the elaborate scythe, but the simplicity in her garment (of which there is little). The feminine shapes look really good as well.
The mini comes in 5 parts: her body, her head, a sword, the top of the scythe, and the left arm that are attached to pieces of sprue.
Quality
Well, honestly I have to admit I was a little disappointed when I opened the plastic bag that contained her. The parts were obviously damaged in transport. Her sword was broken and one of the wings on her head was broken off. As they are such tiny pieces it is quite hard to glue them on, as they will remain quite fragile.
The cast quality was really good, with sharp details and very little flash (on the legs there is some that can be easily removed. Also, hardly any moldlines can be seen. There are no airbubbles , except for one. Unfortunately this one is located exactly in the center of the snakes face. That will be very hard to fix (for me at least).
Assembly should be quite easy. Even though there are no pre-made holes to make assembly easier the parts fit together quite well. A little bit of greenstuff might be needed to fill up tiny gaps, but that should be easy.
Queen of Barbary
This second miniature was free to all pledges that included Figopedia. Again, it is a scarcely dressed lady, this time sculped by Christian Hardy. Also, a nice sculpt with very feminine shapes and two big weapons. One of them is adorned with a big head of one of her latest kills. I wish the loin cloth was a little higher though, there is a little too much “ivy” showing for my taste. I do really like the naughty look on her face.
Quality
Luckily this lady suffered a bit less from transport, but her left boob was chopped (or scaved) off for a large part. I hope I will be able to fix that with my flawed greenstuff skills. Again the details of the cast are very crisp, as we are used to from Figone. There is no flash anywhere and on the body I cannot find any moldlines. The arms and the heft of the axe do have a minor mold line, but with this material that is easily scraped off.
This piece will probably be easier to assemble then Queen of Death as there are tiny holes with corresponding protrusions to make assembly easier.
Overall I think the minis look good in terms of sculpt and cast quality. I think it is really unfortunate that they were damaged in transport. I really hope that Figone will reconsider their packing method of the minis and will use blister packages instead. It is just such fragile material and to see these beautiful miniatures damaged makes me sad.
Final thoughts
I am really happy I backed this project! It’s a really great book with awesome reference pictures and just simply beautiful paintjobs to look at for inspiration. The minis are of great quality and it is also really nice that the paintjobs on these minis is also used in the book to explain some theory parts. Great job Jérémie and the rest of the Figopedia team J.
I hope you liked this review! If you have a product you would like me to review, send me a message and I will happily oblige.
0 Yorumlar