Interview by Keith Pogue

Hey there! One of the fastest rising stars in miniature painting is Inge Mygind Jensen (AKA Jenova). I purposefully sought out Inge because she has achieved excellence in painting in a relatively short time. Inge is extremely generous with her knowledge and has created an awesome web site with tons of quality tips and tutorials. Check it out at Jenova Project. Many of you requested in depth examination of some advanced techniques. Jenova has mastered many advanced techniques in a short time. Now, on to the interview:

KP: When did you start painting "seriously?"

JENOVA: When my little brother was about ten-years old he started painting Warhammer Fantasy Battle and reading White Dwarf magazine. I sometimes helped him paint a bit, but I wasn't that interested. After a couple of year he also lost interest in the miniatures and decided to give the stuff to me, because I might be able to use the paint for other projects. When my boyfriend and I were unpacking after a move, we found the boxed with the paint and a few minis. My boyfriend had painted those little plastic soldiers when he was a kid, so he was very interested in trying this out, and I figured it could be fun to try again. After painting half a year or so, I discovered all the mini-painting stuff on the internet and decided to get into display painting.

KP: How long have you been painting?

JENOVA:Not quite three years.

KP: That's incredible! Do you have any formal training in art?

JENOVA: Nope.

KP: What is your usual strategy when painting a miniature? How do you proceed?

JENOVA: I usually support the mini's head with one of my fingers when I paint. This means that I have to paint the head last. I usually start with painting the feet of the mini and then move up.

KP: What paints do you use?

JENOVA: I have a huge collection of paints and I actually use most of them (even though I have my favorites, of course). Currently the collection consists of the complete GW set, the complete i-Kore set, most of the Foundry set as well as paints from Vallejo and Reaper and a few other manufactures.

KP: What do you thin paints with?

JENOVA: Water with a bit of Flow Improver and Extender.

KP: Do you have set NMM formulas? - what are they roughly?

JENOVA:
Steel:
Foundry Charcoal Light (or GW Codex grey with a little black) --> GW
Codex Grey --> GW Fortress Grey --> White

Gold:
GW Bestial Brown --> GW Snakebit Leather --> GW Bubonic Brown --> GW
Bleached Bone --> White

KP: What is your favorite genre to paint?

JENOVA: I really love Fantasy minis (especially chicks in chainmail bikinis), but I do paint Sci-fi too.

KP: When you are teaching someone to paint - how do you like to start?

JENOVA: With the basics. There is no point in trying to teach someone NMM or fancy techniques when they can get paint within the lines of the
miniature yet. Drybrushing is a useful technique to start out with and it lets a beginner produce relatively good minis very quickly. When the new painter has learned some brushcontrol and is comfortable with the basic stuff, he/she can move on to the more advanced techniques.

KP: I know practice is the best way to improve painting ability, but what other breakthroughs did you make in learning to paint at a high level?

JENOVA: Well, I guess the first step was discovering the internet. The next was trying the actually blend instead of just painting highlights with
sharp transitions. Trying to paint NMM was also a breakthrough for me since you need to take other things than just the smoothness of the blends into consideration when painting NMM.

KP: What would surprise others but how you paint?

JENOVA: I often paint out of the pot (something that will get you lynched in most of the trendy mini-painting communities) and I never mix paint. I also highlight by applying diluted layers of the shading or highlight color.

KP: Your website is really awe inspiring and helpful - tell us about it.

JENOVA: There are a lot of miniatures painting site that just show you pictures without any explanation. I wanted to write a little about every single miniature I've painted; about the techniques used, about the history of the mini, or about weather I was happy with the paint job or not. I also wanted to make the site a resource for inexperienced as well as experienced painters so I tried to do some of the tutorials I hadn't seen elsewhere. In the last year, I've also added a review section and an event section to the website.

KP: What miniature are you proudest of thus far?

JENOVA: Well, it changes pretty often, but at the moment it would have to be my version of Hasslefree Miniatures' Liberty:

KP: What part of the craft/art have you mastered?

JENOVA: I think I've finally got blending and blacklining figured out. Those two techniques are the ones that have improved my minis the most.

KP: What area of painting do you need the most improvement on?

JENOVA: I often need to take my highlights up a bit, to make the mini seem less flat. It is just so difficult and boring.... I also need to work on my basing, which unfortunately means working on my laziness.

KP: Anything else you would care to share with d20 Magazine Rack readers?

JENOVA: Just that you should never be afraid to ask. There are so many mini forums and websites today, so if you want people to critique you mini or to ask a questions, there are lots of places to go. I know places like that have helped me a lot.

KP: If people are interested in commissioning your work how should they contact you?

JENOVA: Everything is on the site :)

KP: Thank you very much Inge!

JENOVA: You're welcome. Take care.