Painted Leonardo Farley Bust
 

Hello again guys, long time lurker at the forums but not often a poster. I wanted to share this with you guys now that it is completed:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvbOZUwR3xs

You might remember me for my YouTube obsession collection of TMNT. Well, I've managed to snag me one of these gorgeous statues and fix it up. I'm more-so a miniature painter but I've done large-scale pieces like Windstone Editions many times before. When I found this A.C. Farley piece I was completely stoked. I didn't even know they made sculpts of the TMNT other than the usual Sideshow or cold-cast ones. So naturally I just HAD to give this a go and repaint it (I got it in very bad shape).

Anyway, I also show progress videos on it via YouTube so you can see how I went about painting it. It's also up on ebay if you want to see still photos. I should have also shown vids of the condition it was in when I got it but I didn't even think about that. But at least you can see it after I stripped and fixed it, plain white primed and in 360 view. I had trouble with some areas because I couldn't find anybody else that had painted one before or any other photos on the web to help me out other than the standard box picture, but I worked it out eventually.

I really wanted to capture the true nature of honorable Leonardo. I wish they had made all the turtles.

Looks good, and I really love the attention you made to color him in a red-earred slider fashion (which is absolutely appropriate and I've never seen it been attempted in such detail before). I'm on board with all of it except for the bandanna color -- Farley did a Mirage bust, not a cartoon/children's spinoff bust.

Looks great =)

That is gorgeous! You are REALLY talented!

And considering you paid for it and put in all the work I think you can paint the bandanna which ever color you prefer :twink:

The bandanna was painted last. I was conflicted. I kept flip-flopping on the color, but decided to go with blue simply because I never knew the TMNT before the cartoon and really prefer the color separation myself. That being said, I did take into account that it has a classic look and many folks prefer the red, especially in Farley style, and I fully appreciate that, so whoever gets the piece after me I will repaint it to suit the buyer. I don't care if it sells or not - I didn't paint it only with the intention to sell...that's not the goal, so in the interim I get to have it the way I want to see it in my display case. Glad you guys are liking it otherwise though!

Awesome job, man!

I agree, great detail, especially painting him like a red-earred slider. This is truly an amazing piece of work, awesome job! I know it wasn't your intent, but why would you even think of selling this?

I disagree with Andrew about the color bandanna, though. I prefer the colored masks, too. This Leo looks badass in blue. The only thing I would have done was painted the weapon handles brownish or black. That was one part I didn't like about the 2k3 designs: the matching bandanna colored weapon tape.

How can you disagree? It's not an opinion -- Farley made a Mirage TMNT bust of Leonardo, not a children's spinoff Leonardo.

Very nice gesture.

To say in the world of the TMNT that preferring the colored bandannas over classic red in a re-paint of a bust is not a matter of opinion and taste seems to me illogical. Although, I suppose I can understand where you're coming from in your disdain if you're a die-hard classic red guy, which you are. :) I'm not, and the colored bandannas do worlds more for me than all red...so that's why I'd disagree.

"Farley did a Mirage bust, not a cartoon/children's spinoff bust" was my post. You then posted, "I disagree with Andrew about the color bandanna." What I posted wasn't an opinion -- he made a Mirage Leo bust, period.

It's like saying, "The new Turtle cartoon is going to premiere on Nickelodeon" and someone piping up with, "But I disagree!"

I can only argue that I prefer the blue, but in defense of Farley, he'd probably have gone red. Either way though, he's all ninja and folks will know him.

As for selling, honestly, I can always get and paint another bust (with hopefully less work to do on the cast!). There was a brand new casting put on Ebay just recently for around $300. Not bad, was seriously considering it. I get more joy out of doing something for someone else who would appreciate it, so painting something for another fan is like my chocolate. If it sells I will have the funds to create a Lego chess set anniversary gift for my hubby (Since I'm a super geek I'll show you that link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go8NlJC5jfM). If not, no worries, I already have the parts list and about 100 pounds of Lego to start me off and plan to buy the set anyway...and it was a personal thing to paint Leo.

I've painted and converted many statues and models. I've done years of work for others based on making income. I've painted just to sell and only to sell, drawn what other people wanted, almost eliminating myself from the equation and what I'D LIKE to paint or how I'd like to paint or draw it. I sold myself cheap working for hire just to make ends meet and get clients. I had to roll over for some of the hardest clients to deal with when they got unreasonable. And you know what? In the end it was all unsatisfying. Art and profit can no longer go hand-in-hand with me. It had utterly devastated me. So now I have vowed that if I ever did anything again, it would be for me first, and what I wanted to paint. Extra income is always nice, but it's no longer my goal (which it HAD to be before). So here I painted Leo because I truly wanted to, and am willing to part with it, not on the cheap, and to someone who will really appreciate and love it. And that doesn't bother me one bit. :)

Wow! This bust is fantastic! I sure hope Leo and the rest of his brothers look like this in the new motion picture! Of course, I’d give them eyeballs for realism. I don’t really mind the blue strands on his swords. They are not as glaring as they were on the 2k3 series.

Wow that beautiful! You did a wonderful job!

Wow that is really amazing. Love the blue Bandana instead of the red for a change.:tlove:

I'm tired of blue and red bandannas on Leonardo, personally. Why didn't you give him a brown bandanna for a change?

This was a job well done. Do you have other work related to TMNT?

Not really anything public. I'm a fairly self-contained artist now-a-days although I've been expanding to YouTube a bit. I'm thinking of painting the TMNT Dark Horse miniatures next but not sure. Their bases are terrible and I've been trying to find a way to make them better so the models actually stand up.

This is fan-friggin'-tastic. As others noted, the fact you painted him to actually be a red-eared slider not only looks amazing but shows great attention to detail both in that it looks just like one, but also that you note the turtles history (very few people know they're actually supposed to be red-eared sliders). Though I do agree with Andrew that this statue was likely intended to don red (despite not being painted) I have to say the blue really just pops. If I were the buyer, I'd keep it blue. As is the case for you, I knew the turtles as a cartoon first and foremost so I can appreciate the sentimental value of the colored bandanas. Plus, Leo is my favorite turtle & blue is my favorite color so to me it's well suited. Excellent work. If I weren't saving up for a Comic Con just a few weeks away, I'd surely bid high on this bad boy.

I didn't know there would be this much buzz over a reserve price, bandanna, and scabbards. I've been getting a few emails about this so I went ahead and ended the auction, then re-listed. If whoever wants the bust want the scabbards as well as bandanna re-painted, I can do that too.

I didn't know there was this big of a division between the folks who prefer the colored bandanna versus those who want the classic red. And I was clueless folks didn't much care for blue on the katanas. I got a lot of "I'd bid on this if..." emails. First time I've ever gotten this much attention on an auction I've posted before.

Well, at least I know there's some real die-hard fans out there like myself! Always good to see.