Traditional scale walker

I'm not going to tell much. It's just a toy horse (bad Breyer copy) that altered into a tennessee walking horse. Or something like that. Materials were airdry clay and acrylics.

I named him Rollo; the long, official name is long, and no one needs to use it, but I have that kind of habit to call my models stupidly.

Have his process from, first, what he originally was and how I resculpted then:

After I freed the horse from his ugly plastic tack and washed with water and soap...

Some days of his life had clearly been spent under the sunlight.

Compared to PAM. She looks like a horse next to that creepy toy.

First resculpts and first (brainless) paintjob. Was easier to photograph but I cursed that blueness while adding white base paint later. The green wire holds his tail chain in place while the glue dries.

Yet more clay on before base paint. Wrinkles, mane and tail.

The tail got sculpted almost completely once, that's why it looks rougher as I generally do.

Someone (me) wanted this model to be takc friendly! It's difficult for a person who loves sculpting manes.

Knife attacked his front (resculpted) hooves...

And after sculpting, let's see his painting process, starting from base white...

I don't love those hind legs, I don't. But I can't fix it now.

Yea, eyes sit too low!

...then come the actual colors (notice that I photographed both sides of same step)...

Digital design for color idea...

...and how the roaning/sabino modifies it.

First layers of brown, to see how I add the patterns. Not that much like I drew but hmmmm who cares.

Front end done. A good "why only one layer is not enough" -pic to show people.

Pangares added.

Colored area skin color added.

Then came the white hairs! I used three different paintbrushes for that, and almost killed my nerves, but I really wanted to do that pattern.

First amount of white hairs...

...second amount of white hairs...

...and a bit more white hairs. Also painted his white area skin color, and mane and tail (or started them).

Hooves painted (water-soluble colorpencils washed with varnish). Eye started.

Here's how I painted the eye whites, or, practically, how I simply started the eye:

Before painting.

Just bright red...

...that got smudged with white to create pinkish.

As finished, with varnished surface, eyes and all details:

Closeups for the eyes. They look better as I expected. And still they are nothing like I know good eyes to look... But at least the ugly barbie horse look is off. The eye whites are purposely very visible and reddish, and different from each other. 

Non-softened flash to show details of how I painted the irises.

Details of fur pattern and tail.Also need to note that I really wanted to keep pangare areas visible enough, although I know... Well, it's not so realistic, but model horses are a form of art... I also think that the rougher hair texture (as I have no brains for drawing each hair with a colorpencil or so) could just tell about the horse's worse living conditions.

And pics where Rollo is with his owner, an old (and very tall) double rex dumbo rat man. (I think I am going to fix the doll's arms once, I'm not pleased with them. Just fixing the proportions.) I am very poor with soft material, that explains the doll's look a bit (not face, that's the easy part).

Rollo got a halter. Not that weird, but that was my first ever 'real' traditional scale halter with leather. Tongue buckle added very recently as that stack of straps is so difficult to put on the horse (and doesn't fit anyone really)...

Professor doesn't see with that lighter eye, it's blind. But he his ears are working.

Nice horse, but still held with chain? Poor nice horse.

In the next photos Rollo wears hackamore and curb bit. My tack never looks as realistic as I wish, but most of the time I just try to make it WORK like real. Just like my dolls. The bridles were made from leftover pieces that I have too much for tackmaking... And is it needless to say that those are not Rollo's personal tack at all. (I also need to fix those stupid side reins once.)

Really that tack seen in the pics are different pieces that are made at different moments. Should do something better, yes, maybe at the future...

Well, what next time? Schleichs I have finished?