Modelers meeting in the real world

Tonino

Well-Known Member
Recently I read in @Nando 's Falcon 9 thread he was planning to take part in a contest near Turin, in northern Italy, where he lives. This turned on two bulbs in my brain:
1) it's a LOT of time since I last took part in a modeling contest (and I never did it since I build cardmodels)
2) it would be a nice idea to meet one of my Zealot friends in the real world.

So I took my decision and, after having carefully packed some "space" models with a lot of care, I jumped on my car and travelled the 460 km that separate my city, San Marino, from Nando's one, Turin, to sign in and accomplish both my new wishes.

Model building can became a kind of solitary hobby if you never go out of your home and meet other people who shares with you your same passion. And after having arrived at the contest place, and having finally met Nando and the contest organizer all the other modelers putting carefully their works on the tables and having realized they all are amazing persons I think that I've lost something during all these years of solitary modeling.

It's a pity that many of you, friends, live so far each other. It would be great if Internet could cancel distance not only in a virtual way - as it does here at Zealot. We must wait until someone invent the Star Trek Teleportation system...

Here is the shot celebreating the real world meeting of Tonino (on the right) and Nando (on the left) in front of their models (mine on the left, Nando's on the right... btw have you seen that Gundam? Very nice! Compliments Nando!). It was a great pleasure to meet for the first time a Zealot friend in the real world

I remember another post about a meeting between Zealot members. Perhaps we could create a sub-section to record such events?

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Rhaven Blaack

!!!THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN!!!
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This is GREAT!
I too have had a few opportunities to meet other paper model builders (to include a few from Here).
 

spaceagent-9

Right Hand Man and Confidant
Moderator
Ron Caudillo and I have met twice, once with Wusley, and it was a great enriching experience and such a great friendships. I would recommend meeting other modelers. and yes, photos of the models would be just fantastic!
 

zathros

*****SENIOR ADMINISTRATOR*****
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Two of my favorite people, together, what a treat!! I have not met Whulsey in person, but we have corresponded, he is a delightful person. I wish I could get him to post here too. He would surely be welcomed. I would love to meet all you guys. though I feel I would feel intimidated. :)
 

bigpetr

Designer/Master Modeler
Meetings like this are always enriching and atop of that you can also see great model live, witch is incomparable to photos.

Sub section woud be great not only to record such events but also to arrange them.
 

Nando

Designer Extraordinaire
Meetings like this are always enriching and atop of that you can also see great model live, witch is incomparable to photos.

Believe me, see the Tonino's LM from life it is something else than see it in picture. It is a masterpiece and you can entirely appreciate it only using your eyes.

We had had a beautiful day talking about our experiences and i hope in the future to repeat these kind of meeting with Tonino and with many other (paper) modelers.

In the mean time i'm working at the next project. But this is another story.

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Best, Nando ;)
 

bigpetr

Designer/Master Modeler
Believe me, see the Tonino's LM from life it is something else than see it in picture. It is a masterpiece and you can entirely appreciate it only using your eyes.

I believe you :), because I feel it same way.

And I am looking forward to Nautilus. You will surely make captain Nemo happy with your build :)
 

Tonino

Well-Known Member
"This was a triumph.
I'm making a note here:
HUGE SUCCESS.
It's hard to overstate my satisfaction."

Jonathan Coulton - Still Alive (Portal soundtrack)
Citation - Dan's style :cool:


OK: I know I run the risk of seeming vainglorious but I cannot resist to share with you the news: my Turin contest was a GREAT success! I took there 3 models: the X-Wing from PaperGrade by Zen, the Snowspeeder from Paper-Replika and, obviously, the LM by @uhu02 !

Results:
gold medal to the X-Wing for Sci-fi/Spaceships category!!!

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Best of show to the LM for the Astronautics category!!!

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I don't put these here to gain your felicitations, :angelic: I just want to share my joy :) with you, my companions, because this was not a paper modelers contest: there were models realized in many techniques from many great artists, most of the works was far better than mine but, for my fortune, they didn't partecipate in the contest as they were realized by affiliates of the organizing club (phew!) :smug: (Yes: Nando's models too!!!! otherwise it won't have been so easy;))

Eventually I think this is a great achievement for paper modeling in a world where our favourite hobby was usually viewed with some kind of suspect, (at least here in Italy where it's not so diffuse as in other countries...)

Well what to say if not THANK YOU A LOT UHU02 :Drinks: for having gifted me with such a marvellous work of art as your LM is!

And Thanks a lot to @Nando :Drinks: for having pulled me out of my house to meet a lot of wonderful artists like him - as well as all the people I met in Volpiano.

:D GREAT DAY!!!!!
 
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Tonino

Well-Known Member
...and now a little peek to the rest of the exhibition (sorry for the bad quality of the photos... my fault, I'm not a good press photographer...

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Nando's corner (next to mine). Following my explicit request, the last day, he took to the show his LM (I just WANTED to see it in person) and the Perdana's Astronaut (with his lots of enhancements, like the Hasselblad camera...)
And see the hand behind the LM: another BIG astronaut... WIP!

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Some other space and SF models

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You know this one very well huh?

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Those are papermodels!!! That speeder is wonderful!! It's the Perdana's one but, what a painting work! Great!

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And this one is fully scuplted by hand and cast in resin. Here you can't see well but I assure you that Foster's and Straker's faces are extremely resembling to the real ones. I don't know how it does... he's an Artist!!! (with capital "A")

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This Yamato and ...
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... this Death Shadow are the most HUGE models I've ever seen. 14 years of building work !!! Even this time the photo doesn't do any justice to the operas (and the glass doesn't help).

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Another very big paper model

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And a couple of wide field photos of the exhibition...

Hope you like them.

P.S. for those having access to FaceBook here is a reportage (better than mine) of the show made by CMT (Centro Modellistico Torinese)
 
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zathros

*****SENIOR ADMINISTRATOR*****
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Same here. Any Hobby shop around here hates the whole idea of Paper models, as it competes they believe with their plastic ones. Of course, if they stocked the glues, and other tidbits we use in paper modeling, they could cultivate a completely new customer base, would probably buy an R/C vehicle or plane eventually!! :)
 

Nando

Designer Extraordinaire
I agree with all of you, it is a pity that there are so few expositions of models and mainly of paper models. Here in Italy there isn't a tradition of paper modeling as in other European countries like Germany or Poland, but in general we assist to a decrease of the modeling activity where the average age of the modelers increases. We need the new generation and in this exposition in Volpiano, my club organised a competition of scroll saw between the children of the schools. Many works, many awards a lot of enthusiasm. We hope that this could be a little seed that will blossom in this digital generation.

Best, Nando ☺
 

Rhaven Blaack

!!!THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN!!!
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Once I have a few good models built and the diorama finished (as well as a video on how paper model making works) , I plan on showing them off at different venues here in Oregon (like Comicon, the State Fair, and any other place that I can). So that I can introduce as many people as possible to paper model building.
So if there is anyone that lives in Oregon, let me know where you show off your models.
 
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bigpetr

Designer/Master Modeler
Here in Czech republic is also quite good tradition, but not so much young modelers. Seems to me that paper modelers are getting old in average :)
 

zathros

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My son is 16. The load of work he has from High School is ridiculous, as is the way they teach it. I have had to teach him everything as they have what they call the "Common Core" method of teaching, which I think is a way of make the whole populace dumber. He likes when I build something, but he is usually doing homework. He is in Advanced Placement courses, which earn him college credits, and is an Honor student, but I would not want to be his age, inn this age.

Republicans, Democrats, left and right wing nuts, their polarization is killing my country, the U.S.A..
 

bigpetr

Designer/Master Modeler
You are right. Lot of pressure on kids today. Everybody wants to go to college and good craftsmans are endangered species.
 
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