the wet nurse

[uberdark]

being as this miniature sold out the other day from kingdom death. i wanted to start out a thread on this. some have begun discussing this miniature on the kingdom death post, but i believe this deserves a good debate amongst us miniature enthusiasts. this mini reminds me much of the "dark eden dead baby" talk a few years back, but i thought it would be good to talk about the merits and flaws of this particular mini. i for one am for it and put in my order to late to get it. lol. but i digress, this is a moment where personal aesthetics turn something like this into either a sophomoric attempt at shock art, or a boundary breaking miniature that helps show miniatures are more than little dollies.

so please discuss and keep things civil.

i would love to hear from kingdom death on their reasons and what not to do this model.

 

[BarstoolProphet]

I had no idea what you were talking about when I first read your post, so I went and looked it up.
As far as sculpts go, it's technically a wonder. Good detail from all angles, and the additional minis that appear separate are excellently proportioned.
I don't consider it particularly shocking or boundary breaking, myself. Just a different medium for Hentai than what most people are really used to.
I'd get one if it weren't sold out. I don't know if I'd ever get around to painting it, though. I'm way behind on my painting, lately.

 

[No Such Agency]

I think my progression of reactions to this are well-documented in the other post... kind of a "slice of NSA's brain function" as it were. I still find it viscerally revolting, but I'm not suggesting everyone who orders one is some kind of misogynistic sex pervert.

I do think an immature segment of the market is always going to be attracted to things like this out of some sort of really weird titillation factor - probably the same people who rush out to buy tentacle anime videos. But that's not to say that it's the maker's intention or the motivation behind others who want one. Some people just like really weird transgressive aesthetics, and I'm sure that some of the H.R. Giger works I appreciate are considered deviant pornography by people more conservative than myself.

edit: "Hentai", yes, that's the word I was looking for. It sure is

 

[Torn blue sky]

I just had to comment about NSA's reason for editing! lmao!

That aside, to me this thing's up there with the whole silent hill lot. It's a nightmarish creation with sinister purpose (Of which isn't entirely clear to me apart from the obvious knocking up women and generally looking evil). I reckon the Geiger link is a valid one, since technically the Aliens revolve around a matriarchal system and they're always looking to reproduce. To me it's basically another nightmarish take on the same concept. It's pretty cool, and it creeps me out, job done I think.

 

[Sukigod]

This is one of those rare (non-ork) minis I felt I needed to immediately order. I was too late as well. Disturbing? Yes. Repulsive? Yes. Does that make me a perv for wanting it? I don't believe so. It actually took me a while to realize the abundance of boobs on it and then my internal thoughts went towards "there's gonna be some people who aren't gonna like this one". I can live without the pregnant slavegirls, probably wouldn't have painted them anyway, it's the mother figure that entranced me.

I agree with NSA and the Geiger connection, that was my second thought (after ew...cool!). Geiger is my favorite artist for that reason, the conflict of attraction and revulsion battling it out inside - he makes me look and makes me not look at the same time. Although I admin because of general social attitudes, had I obtained one, I probably would not show it off outside of the mini-painting circles because of the backlash I know I would get.

 

[supervike]

You know, I'm really torn on what I think about this mini. But the more I think about it, the more I dislike it.

I get that it is 'disturbing' and revolting.

Most of my perverted talk here on the forums is all for comedic effect. In real life, I'm actually kinda prudish. I mean, if there is a hot steamy sex scene in a movie I'm watching with my wife, I get embarrassed. I don't know why, I just do.

I guess I can appreciate the skill it took to sculpt it. However, the concept is a bit weak, IMHO. It's just 'too easy'. It's meant to revolt, so what's more revolting that a huge scrotum and veiny penis with babies suckling the tacked on boobies? Then add some creepy arms, and some tentacly rape scenes...viola! Instant disturbification.

The other figure in this line...The Gorm? Basically the same thing. Just put a bunch of creepified things together, press blend, and you get what you're after.

It just seems a bit too 'surface' for me. The idea isn't subtle enough to be truly disturbing.

If other people like it, that's cool by me, although I have to be honest, I'm not really sure what exactly they like about it.

As far as whether or not this sort of thing has a place in our hobby. There I would just vote with my pocketbook. I cannot see myself buying one.

I actually just bought this model: Which is still disturbing, but not so much 'in your face':

View attachment 4226

 

[Gearhead]

Personally, I think it's rubbish. I don't find it offensive, I don't think it "pushes the envelope," or "makes a statement" or anything of the sort. It's just a poor attempt at a Giger-like creature with tons of boobs and genitalia all over it. It's going for a visceral reaction, but my reaction was just to roll my eyes. Wow, phallic tentacles with throbbing veins, clitoral hoods all over the place, boobs like bad acne, and nude (and inexplicably full-figured) women in degrading positions. How artistic and original. A real step forward for the hobby!

 

[No Such Agency]

I agree with NSA and the Geiger connection

Hmm let me clarify... I don't actually think it's GOOD like Giger. I do think it's a ham-handed crack at similar themes; while I'm not going to pretend that Giger didn't produce a lot of works which seem to objectify women and sex, and make disturbing statements about same, he really went about it in a tremendously talented way. This is just a... mess of creepy sex stuff.

If anyone paints it and posts it here, I will vote fairly on your paint job and not my opinion of the sculpt itself. Whatever else it may be, it looks like it's a beast to paint well. Just, for the love of Nurgle, move that poor woman away from that... tentacle :O

 

[freakinacage]

I just had to comment about NSA's reason for editing! lmao!

lol, nice one, glad you pointed that out

as for the model, well sculpted yes but i don't really like it. the idea is there but i looks like they have just gone on boob overload. like the idea of the one boob, one arm thing so that it can feed them, but the ones on the top look like he just lost control!! as for the women, they seem to have big hips and bums that some how keep their lady bits on display. from personal experience (and watching a LOT of porn, not japaneese nsa!!), if their arse is that big, you can;t see that much. their legs seem kinda skinny too

 

[lizcam]

I would rather look at this than some of the nurgle minis. Is it over the top? Obviously. Is it creepy Hentai-ish quasi-porn? Yup. Is it something I'd want displayed in a cabinet in my living room? Nope. But I do have an odd desire to paint it just to see what I can do with it.

As for the art side of things I find it far less disturbing than that exhibit of resin-a-fied flayed humans and animals that was so talked about a few years ago.

 

[Torn blue sky]

Ah yeah, that german guy that "Plastifies" dead people. Now HE's a creepy motherf*cker...

As far as the boobs thing goes. Well, d'uh! The name of the thing says it all!

 

[freakinacage]

Ah yeah, that german guy that "Plastifies" dead people.

plastinate mich. gunther von hagens i believe. weird fellow and looks a twat in that hat. still some fascinating stuff and excellent for teaching as the tissues don't loose their colour, unlike with formaldehyde. i have to say i thoroughly enjoyed the visit to the exhibition. wouldn't replace it with the anatomy labs for my training as nothing beats hands on experience imo but you don't appreciate how bright the tissues are unless you are lucky enough to have seen a pm (which i was..)

 

[uglybug]

i only looked at the mini because it sold out in 24 hours. I also found it a little creepy and disturbing, however judging by the reaction is that not art? to make people really think about what they are looking at? Im not saying all art should make you squirm but i feel the sculpter should be given credit as an artist. The real test will now be up to the painters. As of now the clean fresh cast mold perhaps reveals to much at once. This model in a creepy gritty scene were our hero comes across this beast looking to slay it could really make for a great diorama. One more thing would this mini be banned from some shows? Is there a no nudity clause in the crystal brush award coming up?

 

[Dragonsreach]

Well having been over and looked at all the pictures all I can say is "Tacky" and a waste of resin.
Can't see the point in having produced it, certainly wouldn't buy it and wouldn't give it house room even as a gift (and that's saying something).

It reminds me of some ultra feminist, highly symbolic "anti-male" art work I saw back in the 80's. (Yeah all men are rapists and pregnancy is just biological slavery).


It says a lot if I look at a miniature and can't even mentally start to plan colour schemes.

 

[Gearhead]

...judging by the reaction is that not art?

Not in my opinion. Art has a long history of people fobbing off absolute crap (and sometimes LAZY crap) as art, and only succeeding because people let them get away with it, reading WAAAAAY more into a piece than it deserves.

Reference, for example, this review of works by Ceal Floyet, better known as "that British lady who got paid tens of thousands of pounds for a garbage bag" http://artintelligence.net/review/?p=398

Also this Cracked article, just 'cuz: 6 Best Shenanigans Passed off as Art

Art is in the eye of the beholder, and I see no art here.

 

[Master of fact]

I dont like it, i dont get it and i certainly dont want it. Have to agree with DR.

 

[Dragonsreach]

Have to agree with DR.

You don't HAVE to agree with me, but it's nice that you do.
Means I'm not alone in opinion.

 

[Torn blue sky]

Ah bollocks, now you've gt me thinking about all the feminazi implications of it. Conversely, i'd love to see what they had to say about it...

 

[wiccanpony]

I find the mini disturbing but I’m sure that is what the artist wanted and instead of breasts if it were penises the debate would of hit a new high …… not something I would buy or want to paint

 

[Roger Bunting]

I'm still undecided about this. It's not something I think I want to paint. But anyway, the point of my post is to repost something Adam Poots posted on WaMP in the discussion there.

"To Clarify a few things,

1 ) The Wet Nurse's function is to breast feed and care for the newly born children of the holy lands. ( this is part of the process to turn them into monsters. )
2 ) She is not capable of having sex and the scene of its tail going into the laying down women is not rape. It's actually draining a miscarriage for nutrients. Its.. its own bizarre ecosystem.
3 ) The Nurse drains milk from women, whom are feed hormones to produce it in great quanities. The drained milk is mixed with its own hormones and fluids and then feed back to the young."

That probably won't change any opinions but there's the explanation as to what the tentacle thing is protruding from the rear.