This blog is really intended to be a digital photo album, a way for me to share some photos of my latest painting efforts with family and friends. Mostly, I feel people will be more likely to buy me toy soldiers for Christmas and birthdays if they can see how beautiful the results are. I've been painting miniatures for a while now, and I've stuck with it for two reasons. First, I can't draw. If I could, I might just paint like normal painters do. But since I can't, having a 3-D canvas ready made is a wonderful thing. I just have to pick the colors and go to town. Plus, I get all the satisfaction of building the miniatures, tinkering with them to get them to look just right. I've always liked to build things, and miniatures let me scratch that itch and still get some painting done. Second, I've always loved fantasy artwork: bright colors, beautiful women, outlandish monsters, really big swords. The miniatures I paint, many of which are designed for sci-fi and fantasy wargames or role-playing games, fit squarely within that tradition. I'm unlikely to dethrone Boris Vallejo anytime soon, but it feels good to participate in the great tradition of fantasy artwork that has always inspired me. So take a look, and I hope you like what you see.
-Ben
