We value their skills immensely and feel quite strongly that they are recognised and credited accordingly for their work.

Some are regular painters that go under the undeservedly lowly title of 'Paintslave' and others fit in figures for us whenever they are able to around their other vast commitments.

Kev works hard to sculpt details onto his figures and all of those who paint them for us manage to reinforce the character of the figures with their painting skills and bring them alive.

Each painter has particular specialties and we give them free reign to interpret and paint the figures as they wish. We don't even specify base type. It is all down to them and their varied talents.

To stop them squabbling over dominance I have listed them below in alphabetical order and if they have a website it is accessible via the link within their individual sections.

Thanks to all of them for their hard work.

 
Peter Bell aka Avicenna
Ben Brownlie aka Badger-loving flufster
Alessio Cisbani aka Wolfbane
Mark Craggs aka Klute
Glyn Evans aka Zaphod
Michael Garcini aka Mix
Ian Haynes aka Lonewolf
Angela Imrie aka Saxonangel
Inge Jensen aka Jenova
Michal Machowski aka Mahon
John Morris aka Mystic Spiral
Mikkel Nyboe aka Starcutter
Simon Parr aka Mad McGobbo
Andy Wedmore aka The Paintacle
 

Peter Bell aka Avicenna

Original member of the 'Slave to Paint Studios' and one of the first Hasslefree Painters, it is not hard to see where the term 'Paint Slave' comes from. Peter is based in the South West down in Devon and 'Pjotir' the Grymn was named after him. One of my favourite pieces that Peter has done for us is the 'Alys with pussy cat'. The freehand playing card base is excellent and the skin tones on the figure just perfect. Since this page was originally formatted however, Peter painted a fantastic version of 'Mjolnir' on the original sculpted snow base which won first prize in the Salute Zero Five 'Single fantasy figure' category of their painting competition.

Ben Brownlie aka Badger-loving flufster

As well as painting his toys, Ben also chooses to play with them and regularly games and demos games systems as well as writing rule sets. UK based, Ben pays attention to fine details and is quite a prolific painter....only problem is he never gets around to taking pictures of them! A fan of BSG, a fact that shows in his choice of colours for his Grymn squads! First painter to paint the Limited Edition version of 'Mjolnir'.

Alessio Cisbani aka Wolfbane

Italian painter who runs 'Wolfbane painting studios' and also a member of 'Figurine Painters', a very talented trio of experienced and dedicated painters. Is very busy so just paints occasional figures for us. His versions of the old couple now resides in my display cabinet after many long hours of negotiation and bribery. The details up close on them are fantastic.

Mark Craggs aka Klute

The newest addition to our team of contracted painters. This UK based painter joined us after I saw his version of the 'gymnast' on CMON and nagged him until he sold it to me. Has recently finished 'Problem child Alice'......very very nice detailing although the photography does accentuate the highlighting on the dress it is actually more blended in real life.. Has recently taken the leap to constructing his own site.

Glyn Evans aka Zaphod

Canadian based and in the same painting circle as 'Saxonangel', Glyn is extremely talented and has spent many years perfecting his skills as a look around his site will show. He painted a version of 'Kain' and then went and sold it on Ebay before telling me, so when he painted 'Kristian' I just had to go and buy it. I justified it to Kev by telling him it was an early xmas pressie and then I squirreled it away in my army transport to keep it safe and prevent him from playing with 'my preciousssss'...lol!

Michael Garcini aka Mix

Based in Paris, Michael has a very understanding wife who lets him paint lots of our toys (Thanks Stephanie!). Michael posts a lot of his work on CMON to positive comment and good scores. I Don't know if I have a favourite figure that he has painted for us, I think I love the colour scheme on 'Russ', it is so bright but works for the figure. Michael also does a lot of sketching and has done some lovely quick drawings of 'Tiriel' and 'Libby'.

Ian Haynes aka Lonewolf

Long term gamer and painter (and I mean very long term..........just no-one mention his age!.......lol....only joking Ian!) Ian is a very fast but precise painter and I think the most favourite piece he has painted for us has to be 'The kiddies' which is a series of three very tiny figures based on the characters of our three young children. The tallest of these figures is less than 19mm high. another favourite of mine is the sniper 'Silvia', the camo is fantastic and if I am not careful I lose her when photographing her as she blends in so well.

Angela Imrie aka Saxonangel

Based in Canada, Angela has been painting for many years and is very talented. A number of the figures that she has painted for us have appeared in our retailer catalogue. The detailing is always clean and precise. My favourite that she has painted for us is 'Svala', the freehand work around the dress and the luminescence of the skin brings beauty to the face of the figure.

Inge Jensen aka Jenova

The Queen herself. Danish born but currently studying in USA, Inge is a very talented painter who runs 'The Jenova Project', a wonderful site where you can find lots of informative tutorials as well as reviews.

Inge is the woman to thank for bringing HF onto the Internet as she has generously maintained our site for the last year and given us a wonderful grounding with which to continue our range.

A big shout out to Inge please and you will always have our heartfelt thanks for helping to establish HF and for introducing so many of your painter friends to our figures.

Michal Machowski aka Mahon

Polish based and a member of the trio of 'Figurine Painters' as well as running his popular 'Chest of Colours' website alongside his equally talented girlfriend Ana. Mahon painted the first 'Kjaran'. The painting on this figure was exactly how Kev had imagined it when he was sculpting it so we were very pleased. A very busy young man who loves his beer as much as his painting but both more than his paid employment!

John Morris aka Mystic Spiral

John runs a successful contract painting service based in the UK. He always paints two copies of every figure for us which leaves me with the dilemma of sending back one copy which is very hard as I usually want to keep them both. Fine detailing is Johns forte and his painted figures usually need very close inspection to see all of the detail. His version of Sebastian has source lighting, stubble and a red nose that emphasises the age of the character. His partner Liz provides the tea and moral support and has recently starting painting as a hobby and shows great promise.

Mikkel Nyboe aka Starcutter

I didn't know Mikkel was 'Starcutter' when I first saw his version of 'Imogen' on CMON. Thought I would keep an eye on him and then I loved the detail that he did on the 'Aquatic troll'. Both are large pieces and not very easy to paint, especially with the large amount of bare flesh on the troll. When I realised the talented Danish painter who was behind the pseudonym I felt very foolish as I had sent him both of those figures on the off-chance that he would be able to paint them for us! Mikkel is one of the 'Headblast Designz' team.

Simon Parr aka Mad McGobbo

Simon is a painter who is improving continually even after 14 years and a few close Golden Demons..... he is even getting the hang of photographing his stuff....hehehehehe! based in the UK, he is a fairly recent addition to the 'Slaves' who is usually found residing upon the 'Forum of Doom' or fiddling around with 'Mad McGobbos brushworks'. Recently he painted 'Benn' which is one of those figures that looks great as bare metal but painted up it comes alive. Simon even had the dubious honour of painting the first 'Xmas Sally', a daunting experience as he had to paint it accurately but remember that it was based on me so had better be flattering or he wouldnt get paid!..........anyhow he did a wonderful job, thanks Simon.

Andy Wedmore aka The Paintacle

Andy has painted for a number of companies over the years and his painting skills are always in demand. He did, however, manage to fit in one small job for us before taking a well-deserved break and as well as painting 'Pirate Kjaran', he managed to put together a painting guide that was in the January 2005 edition of Harbinger