Hey all! For those that have seen my work before, you know what this is all about, for those new, I go to Adepticon every year and make one massive project. For past 6 years of huge projects check out the galleries on my site.




"I have never yet heard or seen anything serious that was not ridiculous" - Horace Walpole

Mr. Walpole is a comrade of taste and method in a different time and place to me. The first true Gothic author, he would often live and create in an obsessive way, for the sake of it wanting to exist, for a need to create and a want to see something in reality. Walpole had a taste for different and extreme; many of his creations were grand not only in skill and method, but size and scope, for sake of size and scope.

"I sat down and began to write, without knowing in the least what I intended to say or relate."

Much like Walpole at his desk improvising the first novel in the Gothic sense, I sit in my own Strawberry Hill, a secluded place not of traditional function but re-purposed to my own enjoyment and pursuits, filled with my own creations and dreams. Late into the night planning and throwing a million ideas to the wall and waking up to see what has stuck. A Gothic structure in the architectural, in the literary method.

Some would look at Walpole and see an eccentric with poor and unconventional taste. I see a man too confident and driven to care of anything but creation of things great in skill, and as importantly scope.

He was a based brother of the arts, and this project is dedicated to him.







This was by far the most prepared project to date. Six months of buying any interesting doodad and whatsthat I felt a pull from on the shelf. Antique stores, flea markets, craft stores and online marketplaces all were fair game. I have done it so much I have developed quite a skill for it and would be glad to share those methods and thoughts, but that is another post.





HORUS WHY

The biggest individual item to purchase, was the mannequin. A lot of sleepless nights over the one to use, but I finally went for one in a regular sitting pose. The other options were some fully articulating models, but they were much more expensive and I felt not worth the work and joint sculpting for a bit more pose freedom.




A quick test fit on the base. The bottom is a strict size because of the glass case I have.




The first real structure work. The legs were cut off in a particular way to open up the pose, allow it to fit, and way down the road also integrate into the throne.





The right column had to start as two large pieces for support, just stacking boxes was not an option.








Right side shapes up, this side is more of the traditional gothic church. A place where those that pilgrimage to the Throne would worship and pay respects.





Blocking out the left side. Fractals, the rule of three, and imperfect symmetry are important rules of not only art but the universe, and incorporating them into anything is important,













The center, "City of Lost Sons."







Work begins on the face after a timely Smooth On order arrives. I am extremely happy with how his face is wrapping up. So much so I can feel a hefty weight lift off the rest of the work, although it will not be taken advantage of!

Until next time! If you wish to keep up in more real time, feel free to follow on Twitter or Facebook in my signature

curious if any paintings do exist of the golden throne?

There is the John Blanche version. And I believe that was a "vision" fluff wise more than a literal interpretation.

*subscribes to thread*

Subbed. This is amazing!

This is glorious, insane and slightly terrifying.

Keep it up.

Thanks guys!

Taking the day off for Valentines, more updates late into Sunday.

An extraordinary undertaking. I wish you the best of luck and will watch enthralled.

R.

Yeah, I'm gonna want to follow this thread.

Your threads always rule. Subbed.

Subbed, I fething love your projects!!!!

Typing this on a coffee soaked keyboard and through a mist of coffee drippings on my screen....

Blows my mind even to attempt something on this scale & really love the little gothic details!... great work.. SUBBED>

this is awesome man. good job

Amazing as ever GMM. Subbed yet again. What do you do with these projects afterwards? Do you have them hanging out in your garage or do you sell/auction them off after the CON? Just curious

 GMMStudios wrote:

Must be Italian

Srsly though, can't wait for more

Very inspiring project. I look forward to seeing it shape up. I must ask, though, is the mannequin meant to be the Emperor's corpse or a giant decorative colossus attached to the throne? If so, I'm honestly not sure how I feel about it. It's a bit too preserved and, more importantly, gigantic. Also, if it isn't the Emperor, where do you plan to put his body?

"For famous men have the whole earth as their memorial." -Pericles

There is a good bit of existing background on the Throne, but luckily for me a lot of room for creativity. Not only in the aesthetic, but also the story. I will save a lot of my writing on the background of this for when it is finished, but for the time being I will say I have always believed the Imperium is an alternate reality where military, technology, science and religion veer off last century or this one, where some horrible fascist regime wins one of the two World Wars, or another in this alternate near future. This should for now explain all visual references and themes, and in the literal sense I see the "crown" of the throne being particular very important memorials from the surface that have been recovered. Very important people in the lineage of the Emperor that he would want to keep and would be seen as relics by those who important enough to lay eyes on the throne. Sort of a family tree if you will, honoring the people who laid the building blocks for the Imperium.

Anyway, enjoy the images for today. Scale is roughly 1 meter wide (same as the throne) and a couple feet high. Watch for Waldo, for scale.














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Darth Bob wrote:Very inspiring project. I look forward to seeing it shape up. I must ask, though, is the mannequin meant to be the Emperor's corpse or a giant decorative colossus attached to the throne? If so, I'm honestly not sure how I feel about it. It's a bit too preserved and, more importantly, gigantic. Also, if it isn't the Emperor, where do you plan to put his body?

This will be addressed when I finish and actually sit down to write the background. It is sort of both. In short it is worshipped as his body, but it is not literal. But also very few know the truth that the Emperor is weak and almost gone. The fluff will be a warp induced fever dream of the throne, where the viewer, before being executed for heresy, recounts his dream of the throne and his horrific revelation that while the "body" is grand and imposing, comforting but also dangerous, the truth is that humanity is doomed. The throne is falling apart and his body is but a bit of tissue.

This is also the reason for so far, the somewhat dreamlike aestheetic of the architecture. It IS literal, but through the lens of the warp.

Thanks for bringing that up

scuzz_bucket wrote:

 GMMStudios wrote:

Must be Italian

Srsly though, can't wait for more

Haha I am glad I am not the only one who thought that!

Lucazi wrote:Amazing as ever GMM. Subbed yet again. What do you do with these projects afterwards? Do you have them hanging out in your garage or do you sell/auction them off after the CON? Just curious

I still have all of them.

deathalus wrote:this is awesome man. good job

MagosBiff90 wrote:Typing this on a coffee soaked keyboard and through a mist of coffee drippings on my screen....

Blows my mind even to attempt something on this scale & really love the little gothic details!... great work.. SUBBED>

Kavik_Whitescar wrote:Subbed, I fething love your projects!!!!

moonpie wrote:Your threads always rule. Subbed.

Jim wrote:Yeah, I'm gonna want to follow this thread.

precinctomega wrote:An extraordinary undertaking. I wish you the best of luck and will watch enthralled.

R.

Thanks guys, you are all too kind!

I like that a lot, GMM. I really like the reasoning behind the Emperor's enormous size. It's easily possible that being so close to the Emperor's incredible psychic essence would warp one's perception of his true form, and presenting it as one would see it rather than how it is is a fantastic idea. Are you going to add pilgrims climbing the stairs to worship/Imperial citizens standing near or around it to show scale?

Thanks. One big hurdle has been trying to make something unique, but also come up with creative reasoning. As we all know, if there were an "official" throne it would probably be a chair made of Imperial Sectors Not that there is anything wrong with that, just GW's imagery is so heavy there is no other option without some added creativity.

I havent decided if I want to add "live" figures yet or not. I am leaning towards no as they will in my opinion conflict with the scales of the other figures, and actually anchor the scale in the viewers mind more than I would like. I would like it to be a bit vague like the architecture. If people want to look at it without my fluff and see it as a 1:1 scale throne and they are comfortable with the notion of him looking like that, they can.

In a nutshell I tend to err more towards interpretation. Especially considering 99% of the time we are dealing with very literal and realistic forms of "sculpture"


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Also I am trying to steer clear of any GW bits. This is not because I do not love GW or their models, but because I want to make something unique. Using a recognizable bit distracts the viewer and takes away from the mystery. Same as human figures, if I start to add bolters it takes away massive amounts of mystery.

And in a similar vein, if I start adding recognizable vehicle parts, this will also distract and become a hunt for the viewer and will cause tunnel vision and distract from the overall view.

So, sorry GW, I love you but in this case, so far I have used 1 GW bit and it likely wont be 2.

And it is also important to note that the throne itself likely wouldn't use STC tech and blueprints. This is would be a one off monstrosity to hold the Emperor of mankind. I can see an arguement for having parts that are recognizable in a thematic sense but I prefer the notion he is much too regal for that. This is fascism after all.

Thanks for the discussion. I expected most of this later after it is done, but fun to talk about it now. I may have to do a blog post just on our back and fort to make sure it is covered over there too.

There can never be enough Kris Kuksi art in the world! Subbed!

Awesome! I am glad someone gets the homage, and I am not the only fan.

The top part is definitely an exercise in that style of decorative assemblage. There are quite a few, but he is most well known as his style is so powerful. He basically took the Rococo decorative flourishing and injected horror and dark good vs evil themes into it. And it is just so over the top.

But I am sure you know that, just had to gush a bit.

I am trying to limit that to the top, with the rest being predominantly my own style. Where he is classical in theme and skirts the line of abstract in his art, I try and be more sci fi and literal. That sort of modelling is my background after all, and I also love old school practical model making, which as a side note is where Kuksi gets the mechanical half of his inspiration as well.

Its a lot of fun doing this sort of sculpture. It is also incredibly expensive. You do not realize how much material it takes until you sit down and do an elaborate assemblage. I imagine his "average" size works (maybe 2-3" round roughly?) cost 5-6000 USD each in materials.

Its really amazing and a nice little "work vacation" to dip my toes in that.

Have you read the old, old BL book called Draco? At one point the main character actually goes to see the Emperor, who is crazy as a fox.

 moonpie wrote:
Have you read the old, old BL book called Draco? At one point the main character actually goes to see the Emperor, who is crazy as a fox.

I have not. Would you recommend it? Who was crazy, the emperor or the narrator?

Im always up for old 40k novels. Most of my favorites are 2nd- 3rd edition era.

Its 0 degress outside Farenheit, but made good progress last night. Epoxy and putty have to be brought in for over 1 hour to be usable. And then cool so quickly they get one use out of them.

Hot water has to be replaced in 20 minutes before it becomes unusable for putty work.

Woo!

A new GMMM project?!?! Fantastic!

Fantastic, and fearsome. Gothic and grotesque. Multitudinous and mind-blowing.

I'm thinking if H.P. Lovecraft had been able to visit Chartres with Henry Adams, then scribble his own twisted nightmare notes over Adams's book manuscript... a reader would end up picturing something like what you're creating here.

I'm loving this. And particularly since I never manage to make it to Chicago for Adepticon, thanks very much for sharing here.

Great stuff. What glue do you use when assembling the Kuski type parts? I can't imagine making something like this without using a hot glue gun, but then you lose the neatness.

I understand not wanting to use gw parts, but shouldn't space marines, aquillas, bolt guns, etc be represented in some way like other soldiers and wars from the Emperor's past are? Maybe there could be some abstractions, for example the Emperor vs Void Dragon could be an eagle vs snake tableau. Primarchs represented by their totem animals, that sort of thing.

Speaking of Kuski, the opening credits of the TV show Black Sails are a (pretty cool) cgi ripoff of his stuff if you never saw them.

Edit: Also did you ever see these? Some images of mummified kings, I thought they worked well as interpretations of the corpse emperor http://www.exprofundis.com/leave-a-beautiful-corpse/

tinfoil wrote:A new GMMM project?!?! Fantastic!

Fantastic, and fearsome. Gothic and grotesque. Multitudinous and mind-blowing.

I'm thinking if H.P. Lovecraft had been able to visit Chartres with Henry Adams, then scribble his own twisted nightmare notes over Adams's book manuscript... a reader would end up picturing something like what you're creating here.

I'm loving this. And particularly since I never manage to make it to Chicago for Adepticon, thanks very much for sharing here.

Thanks! I am happy to hear your interpretations as well. This one will be pretty vague in that regard, and open. In the end it will be more enjoyable for everyone. From people that do not understand the references and just enjoy the overall composition, to those that like and understand the underlying themes and make their own story.

Bruticus wrote:Great stuff. What glue do you use when assembling the Kuski type parts? I can't imagine making something like this without using a hot glue gun, but then you lose the neatness.

I understand not wanting to use gw parts, but shouldn't space marines, aquillas, bolt guns, etc be represented in some way like other soldiers and wars from the Emperor's past are? Maybe there could be some abstractions, for example the Emperor vs Void Dragon could be an eagle vs snake tableau. Primarchs represented by their totem animals, that sort of thing.

Speaking of Kuski, the opening credits of the TV show Black Sails are a (pretty cool) cgi ripoff of his stuff if you never saw them.

I use traditional super glue. Slow but clean. Hot glue just isnt good enough for this. Not only is it weak, but messy and too blunt a weapon for tiny parts.

In terms of iconography:

Aquila - I agree, there are more planned though, that is a final detail stage element. There will be several more aquilas.

Space Marines - My rationale and thought is a king does not honor his grandchildren (which they essentially are) on his own throne. He honors himself and his ancestors. He certainly loves his children (Primarchs), which some are/will be depicted, but the marines I do not think would make an appearance.

Kuksi did make the black sails intro if I am not mistaken.

Dude, the weather...

In Draco, the inquisitor goes before the Emperor for some reason I don't remember. When he meets him and the Emperor telepathically speaks to him, he has several voices and attitudes as though his psyche is shattered and scattered. I think it is a play on how omnipotence could lead to a person being schizo or MPD.

The Emperor was a very Mad Hatter type of character.

I've always loved the forced fusion of organic and inorganic elements in artists such as HR Giger's work. Really looking forward to seeing how this turns out.

moonpie wrote:Dude, the weather...

In Draco, the inquisitor goes before the Emperor for some reason I don't remember. When he meets him and the Emperor telepathically speaks to him, he has several voices and attitudes as though his psyche is shattered and scattered. I think it is a play on how omnipotence could lead to a person being schizo or MPD.

The Emperor was a very Mad Hatter type of character.

Well that's definitely pertinent to this project! Thank you for sharing, and I will have to read it at some point. Its probably to late to get the book before this is finished, let alone have time to read it which is unfortunate, but it sounds enjoyable and I will pick it up regardless.

KAPcom wrote:I've always loved the forced fusion of organic and inorganic elements in artists such as HR Giger's work. Really looking forward to seeing how this turns out.

I love Giger's work as well! If you go back in some of my threads, last year one of my projects was a similar sci-fi/horror/Giger project using a huge egg chair and a lot of putty to give it Gigerish elements. You would probably like it as well.

crazy... I want more.

Wahoo!

Nice im assuming its golden throne as in 40k lore so be cool to see custodies runing around it.

"Good dramatic bs" - Ridley Scott

I hesitate to use the phrase just as Mr. Scott did in the interview I have seen so many times over the years. He didn't mean to make light of the work or thought put into the visual work of his legendary 1984 Apple commercial, he was simply commenting on the process. His reluctance was from an understanding that an average practical mind would want to understand how things work.

If you take any of my loves and influences - assemblage art, science fiction model making, creature effects - the truth is that there is much more fretting over the look than practicality. Many people over the years have taken the famous Star Wars lightsaber and Millenium Falcon and tried to back-engineer them with their imagination. It is a true testament to the intricacy of these models that it can be done, but there wasn't as much a question of "how would this work?" when making a model as a statement of "this looks good visually, and it could work."

This has been true through all the great science fiction movies of the past, from Metropolis to the new Star Trek; good design is a mix of aesthetic and a great deal of skill in improvisation. The answer to the question of "what does this hose on the Millenium Falcon do?" might sadden a professional Engineer, but it doesn't stop his imagination from creating it's own story, and that is the essence of"good dramatic bs."

Damn. You take this to amazing and just keep running....
I am in total awe.

Wow!

Updates look good. Are you leaving the left hand disconnected from the torso like that?

I love your stuff, GMMStudios. It's all so insane.

Remind me to the works of Kuksi. So awesome! I've got some new, weird ideas for some city terrain...

Oh, I got to see this, I GOT to see this!

This is amazing. I cannot wait to see it finished!

AHHHH! Keep it up. This is really coming together nicely.

can someone explain what im looking at?

Wow

That's really all that can be said about this. Its one hell of a work of art.

I see you reference Giger as being an inspiration of yours, and I was wondering if perhaps the small "cityscape" rising from his loins was something of a homage to him. The Emperor giving rise or life to his empire, in a subtly phallic manner reminiscent of Giger (who was way into phallic art, although I'm sure you know that)

I was first introduced to Gothic architecture at around the same time as miniatures. In High School I was part of a class "knowledge bowl." Sort of a spelling bee but for facts. I joined the Gothic section, which was the arts offering, and began to memorize different architectural elements of different cathedrals. What ended up being more fascinating however, and would always slowly take my attention away, was the visual message and the "why" behind them more than the "how." I have over the years expanded upon that, and also come to understand something - these buildings are very much taken for granted.

This is also coming from a New-Worlder. I am sure those of you from across the pond who pass these massive and elaborate structures on a regular basis must become accustomed to Gothic era architecture. More than any other style of architecture this is intersesting. The Gothic feels almost manic in it's need to get it's message to you. The message the encrusted, stretching towers scream silently from their rooted positions, is also the reason the Gothic is more than any other style inspiration for so much science fiction:

"Behold, a grand place of love and worship of a true god; which if crossed, can annihilate you."

The threat is the key. The duality of love and destruction is not present in many other forms of architecture, if any. Why this was introduced when it was is an essay in itself, but consider if it could be an outward threat, or a new understanding of human nature and the society underneath the men who built these very expensive and labor intensive buildings. Regardless, the Gothic cathedral has influenced modern science fiction. The beloved Nostromo, to the less considered Event Horizon.

Event Horizon the movie was unfortunately a dud in revenue, despite the efforts of the visual department behind the movie. The 90s weren't the greatest decade for science fiction; Fifth Element and The Matrix would come a year or two after, and not much before. If you could sit through the movie though, you were treated to some of the best model design of what was released: Event Horizon the ship.

The ship was made digitally, by taking and stretching out Notre Dame cathedral while keeping it's basic elements. Keep all the arches, add a locomotive undertone for the industrial feel, and then greeble the heck out of it, and you have one pretty impressive ship model. It wasn't just great for it's design in a vacuum (no pun intended) but within the movie it built upon the existing themes in the writing. The scene becomes a cross over Neptune. Duality of this religious symbol of saviors becoming the doom and living hell of the rescue team. Watch it again with this is mind, and one can see why Notre Dame and the Gothic style was chosen. Life and death. Salvation and doom. This duality is important in the Throne as well. The Emperor protects, burn the heretic.










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Gingalain wrote:Damn. You take this to amazing and just keep running....
I am in total awe.

lliu wrote:Wow!

Warboss_Waaazag wrote:I love your stuff, GMMStudios. It's all so insane.

The Wise Dane wrote:Oh, I got to see this, I GOT to see this!

wearywarrior wrote:This is amazing. I cannot wait to see it finished!

JeffyP wrote:AHHHH! Keep it up. This is really coming together nicely.

Thanks, your comments keep me motivated. Glad you are enjoying it.

Logan wrote:Remind me to the works of Kuksi. So awesome! I've got some new, weird ideas for some city terrain...

Definitely. I wrote a post last page about Kuski, if I recall right. Love his stuff.

Bi'ios wrote:Wow

That's really all that can be said about this. Its one hell of a work of art.

I see you reference Giger as being an inspiration of yours, and I was wondering if perhaps the small "cityscape" rising from his loins was something of a homage to him. The Emperor giving rise or life to his empire, in a subtly phallic manner reminiscent of Giger (who was way into phallic art, although I'm sure you know that)

You know your Giger!

Johnnytorrance wrote:can someone explain what im looking at?

My WIPs require an inverse relation of alcohol to level of finished.

Darth Bob wrote:Updates look good. Are you leaving the left hand disconnected from the torso like that?

Thats correct.

 GMMStudios wrote:

 moonpie wrote:
Have you read the old, old BL book called Draco? At one point the main character actually goes to see the Emperor, who is crazy as a fox.

I have not. Would you recommend it? Who was crazy, the emperor or the narrator?

Im always up for old 40k novels. Most of my favorites are 2nd- 3rd edition era.

Great book, by Ian Watson who did the first 40k Novels (a trilogy called the Inquisition Wars+ one called Space Marine) reprinted in an omnibus a few years back.

Watson's whole idea was that by 20th/21st C standards the Imperium is completely insane and he wrote it like that.

In the key scene an Inquisitor after literally years of efforts and deceptions sneaks into the throne room to inform the Emperor of a plot and that the Emperor has in fact guided him to this point.

To which the Emperor says "huh?" but then back tracks, basically saying 'oh maybe I did, I mean I am watching over a million worlds"

Only it's better than that.

Yeah I recommend it.

I don't know if this is totally crazy, super awesome, or a chef d'oeuvre!
But I'm sure that I love it and will keep an eye on it!

I love this, but I have one question... Where do you actually imagine the Emperor sits in this?

I have nothing to say you haven't already heard.

Just amazing, simply awesome. So OTT and it isn't even done yet, and each post is worth reading even without the work shown.

Lot of thought put into this, please keep going.

Absolutely godlike!

Where do you find the time to do things like this?

And the white pipework on the bottom of the left hand side is that a resin cast or all seperate plasticard? if the latter you must truly be a wizard.

The golden Toilet, so the emprah is huge, or is his rotten corpse somewhere in there?

Amazing work! Following you on Twitter. I love to sit down and look at the pictures you have posted on Twitter, such excellent work!

Your work is amazing buddy. Keep it going!

I really like your project. What army are you building for this? Some kind of Custodes/Marine combo?

I get an odd feeling that Gulliver has landed in a Lilliput Science fiction nightmare.

Yeah, that first picture gave me nightmares.

This is awesome. Subbed for sure!

Slightly confused, is this meant to be a life size model of the throne or is it the entrance to the imperial palace and is 40k (1:56) scale

Xca|iber wrote:This is awesome. Subbed for sure!

nflagey wrote:I don't know if this is totally crazy, super awesome, or a chef d'oeuvre!
But I'm sure that I love it and will keep an eye on it!

Stormwall wrote:I have nothing to say you haven't already heard.

Just amazing, simply awesome. So OTT and it isn't even done yet, and each post is worth reading even without the work shown.

Lot of thought put into this, please keep going.

Kelly502 wrote:Amazing work! Following you on Twitter. I love to sit down and look at the pictures you have posted on Twitter, such excellent work!

angelofvengeance wrote:Your work is amazing buddy. Keep it going!

Thank you!

40kFSU wrote:I really like your project. What army are you building for this? Some kind of Custodes/Marine combo?

There is no official army for it.

SJM wrote:I get an odd feeling that Gulliver has landed in a Lilliput Science fiction nightmare.

The idea of "Gulliver" could also be expanded to the whole universe. He is a powerful guy tied down by all these little people.

Matthew wrote:Yeah, that first picture gave me nightmares.

Good!

the clone wrote:Slightly confused, is this meant to be a life size model of the throne or is it the entrance to the imperial palace and is 40k (1:56) scale

It is the throne in Warhammer scale.

Kid_Kyoto wrote:

 GMMStudios wrote:

 moonpie wrote:
Have you read the old, old BL book called Draco? At one point the main character actually goes to see the Emperor, who is crazy as a fox.

I have not. Would you recommend it? Who was crazy, the emperor or the narrator?

Im always up for old 40k novels. Most of my favorites are 2nd- 3rd edition era.

Great book, by Ian Watson who did the first 40k Novels (a trilogy called the Inquisition Wars+ one called Space Marine) reprinted in an omnibus a few years back.

Watson's whole idea was that by 20th/21st C standards the Imperium is completely insane and he wrote it like that.

In the key scene an Inquisitor after literally years of efforts and deceptions sneaks into the throne room to inform the Emperor of a plot and that the Emperor has in fact guided him to this point.

To which the Emperor says "huh?" but then back tracks, basically saying 'oh maybe I did, I mean I am watching over a million worlds"

Only it's better than that.

Yeah I recommend it.

That sounds great. I will definitely be buying it after the convention. I like the notion of everything being bonkers, with the Emporer being mortal, only taking so much. The background behind my version has a lot to do with it breaking down and limited lifespan, so this story also adds to the lack of sustainability/burning more psykers.



It makes perfect sense he is taking in so much information at once it must be driving him mad literally, and down to the neuron.

aka_mythos wrote:I love this, but I have one question... Where do you actually imagine the Emperor sits in this?

Jehan-reznor wrote:The golden Toilet, so the emprah is huge, or is his rotten corpse somewhere in there?

I have always envisioned him being more of a mass of cells or a soup; maybe just a head and stem. So he is contained somewhere in the head.

badkamer1 wrote:Absolutely godlike!

Where do you find the time to do things like this?

And the white pipework on the bottom of the left hand side is that a resin cast or all seperate plasticard? if the latter you must truly be a wizard.

They are all bent plastic piping.

So the golden throne is huge. AI thought it looked like this.

It may. That is the John Blanche painting.

I have always loved it, but felt it was a bit too mundane for such a powerful person.

Your interpretation where there isn't much of the Emperor physically left... The John Blanche imagery could just as easily be interpreted as a figure head or something just representative of the Emperor.

Or if the Emperor only survives as a brain in a jar inside this large machine, what other physical bits of him that don't decay are just placed on display like this. I imagine as his physical body decayed his brain was placed in the machine but bones don't really decay and the Imperium isn't the sort to toss those out.

I really like this interpretation of the Golden Throne as a massive effigy to the Emperor, rather than the more literal representations we see in the books.

There's one picture, I can't remember where, that shows the throne room filled with the Emperor's attendants and sycophants etc. It's centered on a massive staircase that leads up beyond where the eye can see. I can definitely envision something like this at the top of it.

The remaining eye on that mannequin is creeping me out. Are you planning on eventually working it over in the same fashion as you've done with the rest of it? Either/or could work I'm sure.

This is fantastic! I have always loved the Gothic imagery in Sci-Fi movies and in the 40k universe, and you are capturing it brilliantly. The Nostromo reference really brought that back--Giger's art influenced a lot of the set design of Aliens 3, I saw years ago, and it was very dark and Gothic. I spent the past summer in Oxford, and seeing actual human skulls adorning the walls in Christchurch Cathedral really drives home your point about people living "across the pond" (as most GW background people and artists do...) seeing not only the architecture of the Gothic, but also very "Grimdark" 40k-like features embedded in this architecture.

My wife teaches an English course on the Gothic & Horror and I actually sent her some links and excerpts from your posts. We were discussing just the other day on how images are largely absent from English classrooms, but brain science research shows that images are a sure-fire way to create memory in students (or any of us...hence the nightmare comment in this post ). So, I suggested that, per your comments, perhaps some images of Gothic architecture might help her students to feel some of that "worshipful/fearful" sense in the writing.

So, thank you for sharing your amazing project--the scale is amazing and inspiring!--and also for your excellent and stimulating thoughts!


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 More Dakka wrote:
I really like this interpretation of the Golden Throne as a massive effigy to the Emperor, rather than the more literal representations we see in the books.

There's one picture, I can't remember where, that shows the throne room filled with the Emperor's attendants and sycophants etc. It's centered on a massive staircase that leads up beyond where the eye can see. I can definitely envision something like this at the top of it.

The remaining eye on that mannequin is creeping me out. Are you planning on eventually working it over in the same fashion as you've done with the rest of it? Either/or could work I'm sure.

Yes, I was looking for that image as well. I actually couldn't find it, but this one from the new 40k rulebook set does give a very clear Gothic impression as well.

 GMMStudios wrote:
It may. That is the John Blanche painting.

I have always loved it, but felt it was a bit too mundane for such a powerful person.

Excellent! I will agree! The details you're providing make me shudder to think the workings in your head! The details are magnificent, and once it's completed one could stand at different angles and observe different things about it. I'm sure pictures won't do it justice.

One I especially enjoy is a skeleton worked into the hillside of a piece you made, it looks like it is the skeleton of a giant, where a town has sprung up in his resting place in the mountains. really great to see a truer scale of the Warhammer worlds both 40K and fantasy, I have seen similar yet not so elaborate work by Henry Higginbothom, http://hghigginbotham.com/ an old acquaintance of mine from Tennessee, took bits or remains of mannequins he turned into Eldar terrain, plus others but those were fantastic. Human sized mannequins put into 40K. the 40K terrain that is produced is great, however in the gothic setting it would all be enormous, scales would be far beyond our 4by8 foot tables.

Keep it up, it inspires me to work on my kits.

John Blanche is another favorite of mine.

I think I know the one you mean, it's origianlly from the 2nd edition rule book. I uploaded a bunch of images from that book for a retro review but not that one alas.

I do ahve this image of the gate though.



And here's one version from Rogue Trader

aka_mythos wrote:Your interpretation where there isn't much of the Emperor physically left... The John Blanche imagery could just as easily be interpreted as a figure head or something just representative of the Emperor.

Or if the Emperor only survives as a brain in a jar inside this large machine, what other physical bits of him that don't decay are just placed on display like this. I imagine as his physical body decayed his brain was placed in the machine but bones don't really decay and the Imperium isn't the sort to toss those out.

I will be addressing this idea of "image for the people" in comparison to THX 1138 in an upcoming post. It is arguably a bit more malicious in THX, but similarly I see this as the image for the people, whereas the true brains and bits are for the Emperor himself and a select few to keep behind the scenes to do the real work.

More Dakka wrote:I really like this interpretation of the Golden Throne as a massive effigy to the Emperor, rather than the more literal representations we see in the books.

There's one picture, I can't remember where, that shows the throne room filled with the Emperor's attendants and sycophants etc. It's centered on a massive staircase that leads up beyond where the eye can see. I can definitely envision something like this at the top of it.

The remaining eye on that mannequin is creeping me out. Are you planning on eventually working it over in the same fashion as you've done with the rest of it? Either/or could work I'm sure.

It is painted as a literal eye there simply because it is from the mannequin. In sculpted form it is less detailed and will be painted over as a gem, solid, I have not decided yet. I improvise quite a bit in everything, because no plan withstands the enemy, as someone said. I should cite that, but I need to hurry.

pantheralegionnaire wrote:This is fantastic! I have always loved the Gothic imagery in Sci-Fi movies and in the 40k universe, and you are capturing it brilliantly. The Nostromo reference really brought that back--Giger's art influenced a lot of the set design of Aliens 3, I saw years ago, and it was very dark and Gothic. I spent the past summer in Oxford, and seeing actual human skulls adorning the walls in Christchurch Cathedral really drives home your point about people living "across the pond" (as most GW background people and artists do...) seeing not only the architecture of the Gothic, but also very "Grimdark" 40k-like features embedded in this architecture.

My wife teaches an English course on the Gothic & Horror and I actually sent her some links and excerpts from your posts. We were discussing just the other day on how images are largely absent from English classrooms, but brain science research shows that images are a sure-fire way to create memory in students (or any of us...hence the nightmare comment in this post ). So, I suggested that, per your comments, perhaps some images of Gothic architecture might help her students to feel some of that "worshipful/fearful" sense in the writing.

So, thank you for sharing your amazing project--the scale is amazing and inspiring!--and also for your excellent and stimulating thoughts!

My pleasure! There is certainly something to be said of conditioning vs lack of exposure in the old and new world.

pantheralegionnaire wrote:



Yes, I was looking for that image as well. I actually couldn't find it, but this one from the new 40k rulebook set does give a very clear Gothic impression as well.

I love that image. While I did spend days doing nothing but image research, I kept away from going back over any actual GW imagery. For one I have seen it enough to be influenced already, and secondly I wanted more of the classical style to seep into it to make it my own and more representative of my own taste. We all know as I have said before the official GW throne would likely be a giant Imperial Sector kit, if they ever made a model of it. Nothing wrong with that, not to sound derogatory, I just wanted something with my own twist. I wanted to make something that would stand on its own equally as well without any reference to 40k, as it would from the viewpoint of a literal interpretation of the throne.

I will note while I am overall 100% satisfied with my progress so far, in a world with unlimited resources, time (I have/had about 3 weeks to build) and access to cad machines I would prefer more of a spire look. Trust I have scoured every possible modelling, hardware, and craft source and nothing is available to have that look without scratch fabrication.

There was always the option of buying dozens of $50 model kits for their spires, but I have to draw a line in the budget somewhere, and this as it stands is several thousands in supplies. Also what does exist is rather chunky, compared to the sleek and dangerous look I would want.

But I am very happy with the steampunk/gamepiece themes in the spires as they are.

Kelly502 wrote:

 GMMStudios wrote:
It may. That is the John Blanche painting.

I have always loved it, but felt it was a bit too mundane for such a powerful person.

Excellent! I will agree! The details you're providing make me shudder to think the workings in your head! The details are magnificent, and once it's completed one could stand at different angles and observe different things about it. I'm sure pictures won't do it justice.

One I especially enjoy is a skeleton worked into the hillside of a piece you made, it looks like it is the skeleton of a giant, where a town has sprung up in his resting place in the mountains. really great to see a truer scale of the Warhammer worlds both 40K and fantasy, I have seen similar yet not so elaborate work by Henry Higginbothom, http://hghigginbotham.com/ an old acquaintance of mine from Tennessee, took bits or remains of mannequins he turned into Eldar terrain, plus others but those were fantastic. Human sized mannequins put into 40K. the 40K terrain that is produced is great, however in the gothic setting it would all be enormous, scales would be far beyond our 4by8 foot tables.

Keep it up, it inspires me to work on my kits.

John Blanche is another favorite of mine.

Bookmarked! Really wonderful stuff. I love it when modelling goes outside the box.

Found 'em.

I doubt GMM needs to see these but since we're on the subject...

 Kid_Kyoto wrote:
I think I know the one you mean, it's origianlly from the 2nd edition rule book. I uploaded a bunch of images from that book for a retro review but not that one alas.

I do ahve this image of the gate though.

Ah yes I remember this image well. I no longer have that book but it is burned into my mind.

Lots of stained glass inspiration in that, I love it.


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 Kid_Kyoto wrote:

Yes that little thing at the top, that is what I am after. I wish I could model the whole tower, but this thing has to fit in a trailer.

That's fantastic. Those are indeed the images--and the scale of them is much more like what you are trying to create. So well done on that ambition!

I have since ogled your GMM website and holy crap, you can really paint too! So this will not merely be a magnificent piece of terrain, but will in all likelihood boggle the mind with paint as well! So I am even more excited than before.

And just for the record, I AM hoping for some Cherubim or Custodes or Mechanicum adepts or something...if only just to provide scale reference for the Throne.

 GMMStudios wrote:


Yes that little thing at the top, that is what I am after. I wish I could model the whole tower, but this thing has to fit in a trailer.

You can. The Imperial Throne is seated between two warlord titans of the Fire Wasps. The imagery has titans of unknown design and like a lot of GW titan art grossly out of sale. We have a more reasonable canon size for titans and your throne would fit between them comfortably at current size.

That doesn't necessarily mean there is no vast pyramid in Empy's pad. It sounds like he sort of feature a galaxy spanning divine warlord might want as decor for his sitting room. You can't out-do the Imperium of Man for dictator chic.

 Orlanth wrote:

 GMMStudios wrote:


Yes that little thing at the top, that is what I am after. I wish I could model the whole tower, but this thing has to fit in a trailer.

You can. The Imperial Throne is seated between two warlord titans of the Fire Wasps. The imagery has titans of unknown design and like a lot of GW titan art grossly out of sale. We have a more reasonable canon size for titans and your throne would fit between them comfortably at current size.

That doesn't necessarily mean there is no vast pyramid in Empy's pad. It sounds like he sort of feature a galaxy spanning divine warlord might want as decor for his sitting room. You can't out-do the Imperium of Man for dictator chic.

Just to quibble, the gate to the throne room is between two titans (who've sttod there so long they've sunk into the floor), there's nothing solid on how big the room beyond them is.

On a practical note, I am hoping you are getting to do this with some proper heat. This month has been blisteringly cold.

If I miss Adepticon, I'd still like to see this thing. Can you get this in a gallery, so I can come down and see it?

 pantheralegionnaire wrote:
And just for the record, I AM hoping for some Cherubim or Custodes or Mechanicum adepts or something...if only just to provide scale reference for the Throne.

You can spot a marine (Brother Waldo?) in some of the pictures to give a sense of scale. Though I think models of living humans will be abscent from the finished model, precisely for the reason of keeping the scale somewhat open to interpretation if I correctly remember GMM's previous posts.

Let me also chime in with the choir of admirers of your work here GMMStudios. You deserve every bit of it.

 GMMStudios wrote:

 Kid_Kyoto wrote:
I think I know the one you mean, it's origianlly from the 2nd edition rule book. I uploaded a bunch of images from that book for a retro review but not that one alas.

I do ahve this image of the gate though.

Ah yes I remember this image well. I no longer have that book but it is burned into my mind.

Lots of stained glass inspiration in that, I love it.


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 Kid_Kyoto wrote:

Yes that little thing at the top, that is what I am after. I wish I could model the whole tower, but this thing has to fit in a trailer.

I've always assumed the top picture is the eternity gate or the door the throne room, and not the throne room. You can see a massive crease in the middle of the mural at the back, just assumed it was a door.

awesome

When you say 'spires', what are you referring to?

 GMMStudios wrote:
It may. That is the John Blanche painting.

I have always loved it, but felt it was a bit too mundane for such a powerful person.

I prefer the Golden throne being small and unimpressive. It reflects on the poor foundations the Imperium and its beliefs are built on.

However this is amazing. I could see this dominating the skyline of Terra or Ultramar.

i also like the way you have fleshed out your emperor as most drawings i have seen he is just a skeleton really

"Thou art a subject of the divine, created in the image of man, by the masses, for the masses." Spoken by a tinny speaker and plexiglass screen of god in THX 1138. The image of the creator in science fiction is usually a technologically overgrown and encrusted version of the 17th century, both visually and liturgically. A grand empire is a common theme, held together by a massive character often with two sides to one coin. In THX it is an image of god, stylized and classical, but behind the curtain a mass of wires and reels of tape with canned responses (perfectly timed by Lucas) to only be less than awkward to these sedated people. In Warhammer, the image of the Emperor for the people, is a massive effigy of the Emperor surrounded by a grand palace. While behind the scenes only a very select few, or perhaps only the Emperor himself know the dark truth, and keep the last masses of his cells alive.
















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 moonpie wrote:
On a practical note, I am hoping you are getting to do this with some proper heat. This month has been blisteringly cold.

Its supposed to get up to 35 this week!

I do have a heater, but it is flameless and doesnt raise the temp much more than 15-20 degrees. So when it is 10-15 it is just slightly above freezing.

Burn a lot of calories though!

 moonpie wrote:


If I miss Adepticon, I'd still like to see this thing. Can you get this in a gallery, so I can come down and see it?

I would like to at some point put them in to a proper gallery. After this I will be putting some lines out.

i like all the pipes at the back of the head

Glorieus, to watch and to read

Thank you

That is amazing! I don't know if you're doing some sort of photoshop effect (because there's still color in the background) but the "black and white" shots are awesome at showing detail and texture. And that's kind of counter-intuitive for me, since usually color helps detail "pop." But I guess there's so much going on on this structure that it actually helps in this case; prevents the riot of detail from distracting. I wonder what thoughts you have for painting this, if you share my assessment above. I guess I'll see eventually! Very exciting.

Just to highlight a couple of new additions that I love:

- The "underbelly" of technological gizmos and fans and what-not, powering the Throne, is fantastic. Very Wizard of Oz (as a counterpoint to the THX reference)

- The Louis XIV statue which you coverted to be some crazy hard-wired something is very 40k, and I like the leering skull in the background behind and above it.

- The disembodied hand is looking better--the bracelet was very effeminate (as was the ring to a lesser degree) so the added detail helps in my opinion.

- What is that angel you are building on the thigh? That is also very awesome.

Anyway, fantastic Monday treat for me! Thanks for sharing! And I did spot "Waldo" in the one shot.

Thank you, and all very valid comments.

The angel is holding an impaled serpent banner

just amazing, keeP it coming!

I am really enjoying the 'spot the GW parts' game.

It isn't easy! You can count them on one hand.

That is, counting all the skulls as one

I'm having fun with spotting all the Pegaus bits. I love those kits.

How did you do the forehead eagle and other brands?

Sodering iron and a steady hand?

Looking good

This thing is amazing, and getting better every day.

No deep thoughts this update, too busy painting. But it is going very well, and will be finished on time for the convention.


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 Kid_Kyoto wrote:
I'm having fun with spotting all the Pegaus bits. I love those kits.

How did you do the forehead eagle and other brands?

Sodering iron and a steady hand?

Carved into clay.

Looking tremendous already! Keep going, man!

Wow, I... Holy... I mean, just... Damn, dude.

Same thing I said before.

It is awesome in the "awe," sense of the word, the original meaning. (Not what is used today.)

I want to see some Adeptus Custodes standing guard scattered around on this.

Is it bad that what I want to see more than anything are the group of psychers that are sacrificed to the emperor every day to keep him "alive?" It seems bad

Amazing!

AHHHH! This is so good! I've been checking this blog religiously!

...pun not intended. But awesome nonetheless.

Done!



http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/639832.page

Please don't bypass the language filter like this.

Reds8n

That's what I call dedication or should I say obsession?

Great project. I love the other ones on your site as well.

Absurdly beautiful.

Thanks for following along Hope you enjoyed it.

Thats amazing, so much detail and hard work.

The amount of dedication, detail and work put into this just blows me away..

Fantastic! Have fun at Adepticon!

Just posting this here for the record, back to work for me!



http://gmmstudios.blogspot.com/2015/03/golden-throne.html

Just stunning.