By Laurie Goodridge

Lets face it, not many of us here in Tassie can make it up to the finals of Golden Demon day in November. Lucky for us, former Golden Demon Judge, winner, and all round friend and good bloke Laurie Goodridge was on hand, and wrote us this very inspirational and atmospheric review of the day, and his impressions.

fter a few brief words with the judges, Sebastian Archer turns to a crowded Battle Bunker and humbly raises the Slayer Sword, triumphant once again, but without a trace of conceit. He knows he's a great miniature painter, seen globally as one of the most talented in a short-list of world's best. There's also a hint of genuine surprise at his win today, Sebastian has no hesitation in recognising the abilities of his peers and I get the impression that he would not have been upset if one of them had taken the grand prize rather than himself. It’s a deserved win, his work this year is spectacular in both technique and presentation and when it comes down to the near impossible task of choosing the years Demon Slayer, Sebastian's Galadriel ticks all the boxes. The balanced and natural palette of colours are beautifully applied, it's atmospheric and evocative and truly gives us a glimpse of Middle Earth.

But what a choice to have to make given the competition. I spent four hours in the store over two days pouring over the finalists works, frequently stumbling over my own jaw at the originality, eyes a-boggle at the precision of detail and I'm fired up and desperate to get back to my desk to get painting. Inspired.

I had a few pieces pegged for places in my mind before the announcements and overall I don't disagree with the judges calls. Being on the other side of things this year was enjoyable. It made a refreshing change looking at the entries without having to be quite so critical. At the judging table at this level you have to rank models on all manner of criteria and it has to be a unanimous decision on the placings which can lead to some robust discussion, it's really not an easy job, but the team of volunteers this year have done it well, I can tell by the fact they all have headaches.

It's worth mentioning at this stage that as an entrant, if you've made it anywhere in the competition you are a great painter. I say this because as in any competition, what you want is to be the winner (don't deny it) and sometimes entrants can get disheartened when they don't win. If it was a sporting event where the winners are clear: faster, higher, further etc, then it would be easier to take. But when it’s a subjective thing like painting where it’s not always clear, the defeat hurts and confounds just a little bit more. Take this on board: If you are being judged at the finals, the difference between placing and not placing are not huge. There are three places and they have to be allocated - if you didn't manage to get one this year - don't think it’s because you are a worse painter, it’s not, it’s just that your peers are also great painters and today they took home a trophy. Resolve immediately that next year will be your year and lift the competition. I've taken a bunch of pictures so you can have a look at some examples of what lined the cabinets, have a good look over them and form some opinions of your own. What's good? what's exceptional? Is there anything you want to try to imitate? What's going on with technique at the moment? Who's work is similar and who's really taking risks this year? My take on some of these things is that the overall quality of entries is higher this year and people's work is generally more sophisticated and technical. There's a good deal of evidence that painters are sharing ideas and techniques and feedback from stores. Painting groups and forums are helping advance painters work to new and brilliant levels. I'm pleased that colour is making a welcome return and that the washed out, beige looking CG inspired entries of past years have begun to be replaced with more contrast and richer colour. Application of shades and highlights are still flawless but with a vibrancy that is so much more engaging.

There are some exceptional works this year, the ones that I look at and instantly get that 'Wow' moment. To single just a a few out: Jamie Dalzell's Steggadon is a marvel of soft shading and sensitive colour choice. Marcus Blackman's Chaos Squat is a riot of vivid colour. Martin Dupont's Dire Avenger Exarch with its perfect white plates - watch out for this guy in future Demons. Steve Guo's Dreadnought makes me want to own that kit and Kyle Morgan's Diorama is the best I've seen from him to date. Compared to the rest of the world, the Australian level of sophistication is competitive and if there were ever a Slayer of Slayers competition I'd like to think that the representatives from our corner of the globe would be victorious.

As I mentioned at the start, all I wanted to do after seeing these entries was to go home and get painting, to try out some new styles and colour applications. I spent a couple of hours on a piece yesterday, allowing the inspiration of the comp to really present itself. I'm chuffed with the result so far and I think it will make a great addition to my collection when it’s finished up.

Inspiration. That's what it’s all about. Golden Demon is about looking at what is possible, seeing how others have chosen to tackle that model and present it as more than just a gaming piece. To breathe life into the tiny forms of dreams, for no other reason than enjoyment and perhaps the chance to take home a symbol that justifies the endless hours of effort that went into it. Take that inspiration and go paint some, there's less than a year until next year’s Golden Demon.