The Mistral II (+interview!)

One of the most popular MOCs this week is the Mistral II - a massive flying Steampunk ship drawing inspiration from the Eiffel Tower. It's Nathan Proudlove's remake of his original 2006 creation The Mistral. So sit back, and enjoy the pictures whilst reading a short interview I took with Nathan...

John: The Mistral II is the second version of the Mistral, the first version of which was made a few years ago. What gave you the inspiration to remake such an old project, and why now?

Nathan Proudlove: I decided to remake the Mistral on the way home from a show in which it had been displayed. Mistral I was packed loosely in a box in the back seat of my car, (I didn't have very far to drive) when I heard a sickening sound from behind me at a stoplight. The ship had completely disintegrated! I had only had the thing completed for two weeks when it just ceased to be. Structural integrity wasn't exactly a priority with the first one. So I knew it would have to be rebuilt eventually, I just wasn't sure when.

J: This second version is very different to the first, yet keeps some of the unique features. How did you go about redesigning the Mistral I? Did you start from scratch again?

NP: The rope bridges that I had used for trusswork on the original were actually loaned to me by a friend, so when I returned them, I knew I had to come up with something different for the new version. The idea came while sorting, as it so often does, to use the dozens of dark grey struts and large Insectoid legs I had collected, to loosely replicate the iron work in the Eiffel tower as the base of the Mistral II. The command structure above the deck went through many redesigns, and I consulted with a few of my steampunk peers along the way. They gave good solid critique along the way and got me to pay attention to detail in areas I might have otherwise missed.

J: The Mistral II is clearly a Steampunk creation. Did you use any Steampunk pictures or concept art for inspiration? For example, what gave you the idea for the glass house?

NP: The concept for the first version of the Mistral was mostly inspired by the flying aircraft carrier in the film Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. The design of the ship itself was almost exclusively mine though. I simply imagined what a flying aircraft carrier would look like if it were placed in a steampunk setting. The Mistral II, however, took many more design cues from specific sources. I've already mentioned the Eiffel Tower, and the Palais d'Industrie from the Paris World's Fair in 1855 is the source for the glass dome. Mistral II was designed to be elegant, refined and symmetrical, qualities of which the first Mistral possesed none.

Well there you go: anything you ever needed to know about the Mistral! Many thanks to Nathan to answering my questions. I'll [hopefully] see you next week for another interview!


~John

No words needed.

Or at least, not in Spastik Chuwawa's latest Brickfilm, Snob on a Pogo Stick. It's quick, it's witty, it features some great animation techniques and, best of all: you can see pictures of the set on Flickr. What's not to like?

~John

REAL Collectable Minifigure pictures!

As the saying goes, pictures speak louder than words... and so I leave you with this first ever non-render picture of the collectable minifigures to be available in newsagents or somewhere-like-that this June.

Images courtesy of good ol' Dano courtesy of Pocket-Lint. See close ups of the minifigs:

Clown

Diver

Crash-Test Dummy

Spaceman

Emo Kid

Magician

Ninja

Caveman

Robot

Wrestler

~John

You Could Say I've Fallen A Little Behind

Hopefully a few of these new creations by fellow Flickr users will cheer you all up. Or at least keep you interested in these posts that I make. It seems like John's getting all the attention which is understandable since he posts so much. Anyway lets see if I can deter a little attention my way.
Anyway the first one lined up is by fantastic Pirate builder Derfel Cadarn and this MOC is more than up to par with his usual. The concept is great and the rock work is just as nice. Great work Derfel Cardarn.

Redcoat Rum Runners!, originally uploaded by - Derfel Cadarn -.

Next we have this cool Snow Cat by ltwp formally Gladius on Flickr. This creation sports some great techniques and just looks so adorable. I've always been a sucker for a well designed model, in fact I prefer them most times over dios and this creation is no exception.

Snow Cat, originally uploaded by _ltwp.

Last we've go another pirate creation by Flickr user Sir Regonold who seems to often take a lot of inspiration from building Sir Nadroj, but this very original creation is great sporting a very popular (as far as Flickr comments are concerned).

Colonial Town Center, originally uploaded by Sir Regonold.


Huff, huff. Well that's a line-up now hopefully from now on I won't have to catch-up.

Make Way...

Robot Tune Up Lab, originally uploaded by V&A Steamworks.

This new Robot Tune Up Lab by Flickr user V&A SteamWorks (Guy Himber) is coming through with another one of his prevailing steam powered creations and I think this one is just marvelous. The backdrop is well detailed and the mechbot is just as cool. Nice work Guy!