It’s August, which means one thing – it’s Warhammer+ launch month. Come the 25th, everyone will be able to subscribe to get exclusive new animated series, Battle Reports, deep lore breakdowns, and loads more, all in one subscription. With so much Dominion left to paint and Kill Team: Octarius coming in, we’re particularly looking forward to the Citadel Colour Masterclass show, a painting workshop hosted by one of the best miniatures painters in the world right now, Louise Sugden.
See what we mean? This incredible synthwave* take on Grendl Grendlsen came about because she wondered what the Raven Guard might look like if they stopped wearing black.
“I had a great time going a little crazy and letting all the colours be super over the top as well as working in some weird patterning,” she explains. “I also sculpted him a little flamingo because it just felt like the right thing to do. I personally think it's sometimes nice to give your Warhammer little pets.”
Pets are actually something of a theme in Louise’s work, as you can see from the shifty-looking three-eyed owl keeping her glorious Mindstealer Sphiranx company.
“The converted sphiranx is one of the most fun minis I've ever painted. I went for a strong crystal theme and tried to capture a creature made of pure light. The wings and horns were especially fun to paint and I really took my time working out things like contrast and lighting,” she says.
“Again, due to my love of tiny Warhammer, this mini comes with a tiny cosmic owl familiar (some say he is the true Lord of Change).”
Even when she’s trying to be low-key, she can’t seem to help herself, as this Primaris Intercessor in a classic colour scheme** demonstrates.
“My love for old-school colour schemes is endless and doesn't stop where the shiny new miniatures begin. Painting this Primaris Space Marine as a classic Rogue Trader-era Rainbow Warrior was an absolute delight,” she says.
“The colour scheme translates really well onto the new miniatures. I had a blast adding some subtle shine to the armour as well as working to make the blue really pop. The old Goblin Green*** (Warboss Green with a little added Moot Green added) base was the icing on the cake for me.
“Now to paint a whole army…”
This Pink Horror is possibly her finest – and most mindbending – work. The picture on the left is how the miniature actually looks, while the right is how it appears when you digitally invert the colours.
“The negative Pink Horror is one of my wackier ventures,” she says, with a degree of understatement. “I wanted to push the boundaries of what I usually do for my Tzeentch colour schemes.
“My bright idea was to create a colour scheme which doesn't even really exist in our realm of existence. I painted the miniature entirely inverted so that the only way it looks the way it should is to completely flip the colours on their heads.
“This was a mad experiment into miniature painting.”
Finally, this smaller-scale model of Gandalf and Bilbo Baggins somehow still has pupils. And a bird. Wild.
So if you want to learn how to paint vivid colour gradients, minutely detailed animals, and miniatures in impossible backwards colour schemes, you’re absolutely going to want to tune into Citadel Colour Masterclass on Warhammer+ later this month.
Launching on the 25th of August, Warhammer+ is right around the corner. We’ll be bringing you more information on what else you can expect when you subscribe next week, but for now why not sign up for email updates?
* Electronic music that’s heavily influenced by 80s action and sci-fi movie soundtracks and aesthetics – We suspect synthwave to be a favoured genre among organists seen atop Adepta Sororitas Exorcists.
** The Rainbow Warriors are about as classic as it’s possible to get with a Space Marine.
*** Goblin Green was the somewhat lurid green colour we love that every Warhammer miniature used to be based with.