Devin has been painting competitively for seven years and enjoys the drive and challenge. He has won many awards including Best Vehicle Category at LVO 24. He absolutely adores weathering, rust, damage and storytelling. His favorite subjects tend to be robotic or vehicular in nature and loves telling a tale through the small and subtle details. He is a contributor to The Hobby Collab, encouraging fellow hobbyists to always challenge themselves and grow. When he isn’t painting, talking about painting, or teaching painting he is playing with his giant 55lb Shiba Inu, Maru, The Dire Shiba.

Click HERE for his Instagram Site.

Derek Clawson has been painting miniatures for over six years, learning from many top painters in the industry to develop his technique and style. His moody and atmospheric style has garnered him attention on social media and live streams as well as winning him awards in multiple painting competitions. Derek uses his experience and knowledge as a teacher to provide a depth of understanding for his students, so they can work beyond simple color recipes and onto more advanced theory to achieve greater results.

Click HERE for his Instagram Site.

Layne painted for 5 years as a teenager before there were any tutorials online. After becoming frustrated that there were no opportunities for learning to paint outside of going to art school, he hung up his spurs. Around 2017 he started back in the hobby and was fortunate to meet some fantastic painters while he was living in San Diego. Since then Layne has continued to push himself to become a better painter and create fantastic art that people enjoy to look at, regardless if they are a gamer or art aficionado.

https://www.instagram.com/rear_admiral_miniatures/

Sam has been painting minis almost daily since mid-2021. He paints a variety of subjects (though most are monsters) at both tabletop plus and competition level. He paints bravely, fails often, and succeeds some times! Winner of Kublacon Masters Silver and Gold in 2023 and 2024, respectively, Sam has a repertoire of impactful theory and techniques he's excited to share. These include theory and composition, working in acrylics and oils, base and diorama building, and sculpting! 

https://www.instagram.com/sams_minipainting/

David Diamondstone is a passionate miniature hobbyist who has been painting for over two decades. He originally got into the hobby to paint gaming figures, but has also been entering painting competitions since 2010. He has awards from competitions including Crystal Brush, Privateer Press, Gen Con, Reapercon, and KublaCon, where he has won five Best in Show awards. When teaching classes, he has a mainly hands-on approach. Classes start with a few minutes of demo and/or instruction, after which the bulk of the class is spent having the students try out the techniques of the class, and receiving feedback and tips as they paint. To see how he explains concepts in miniature painting, check out his tutorials at www.lightminiatures.com/tutorials/.

Matt DiPietro is one of the most experienced miniature painters working today. His career has spanned all aspects of our hobby. Starting as a wargamer playing games workshop games and painting armies he eventually launched his professional career in 2006 as the lead studio painter for Privateer Press studio. There he shaped the painting of the Warmachine and Hordes studio models for nearly a decade. These days he makes his living teaching the next generation of miniature artisans, and creating miniature art for private collectors under the banner of Contrast Miniatures. When you hear Matt talk about miniatures, art, sculpture, and painting you feel the love he has for all aspects of our hobby. As a teacher, Matt’s goal is to help each student explore the hobby regardless of current skill while loving their work as they grow into a better painter.

Kevin Duranleau is a miniature painter and tabletop hobbyist with nearly 30 years of experience in the hobby. He has previously worked as a commission painter and is known for clean, precise work with a strong emphasis on contrast, clarity, and models that stand out on the tabletop. His painting style focuses on achieving eye-catching results that remain practical and repeatable for gaming armies.

While he regularly paints Warhammer 40,000 and Age of Sigmar, Kevin has also painted extensively across multiple systems, including BattleTech, Warmachine, Bolt Action, and Infinity. He is an active participant in speed painting competitions and hobby events, where he has earned multiple wins for producing high-quality work under time constraints.

Painting is a long-standing passion for Kevin because it blends creativity, technical skill, and problem-solving. He enjoys sharing his experience with others and helping hobbyists of all skill levels improve their fundamentals, work more efficiently, and gain confidence in their painting.

David has been tabletop gaming and painting miniatures since the early nineteen nineties!  After nearly a decade of commission studio operation for some of the top collector’s in the world, he now also dabbles with 3d modeling, printing and even game design.  He focuses his painting efforts on studying lighting, and how this interplays with textural surfaces in a given environment.  In 2023, he accepted the position of Liaison, and House Artist of Verko’s Vault.  This is the first Museum of Fantasy Miniatures which is set to open some time in 2025!  In his work with Verko's Vault, he is the principal director of a new line of Iris Artist Oil Paints being developed specifically for miniature art.

AJ began painting in 2002 after a summer abroad at Cambridge University. Since then he hasn't been able to put down the paint brush. in 2012 he started to take his painting more seriously, attending classes and competing in figure shows. In 2016 he attended his first Kublacon as a recent transplant to the Bay Area. Since then he has won awards for his painting in Kubla Master's class category, IPMS shows, and was a featured artist at UK Games Day in 2020. 

Nicholas began painting as a child, fascinated with the Napoleonic wars and of course D&D. After a long hiatus to pursue career and raise a family, he returned to miniature painting 15 years ago. Nicholas has been active painting miniatures, sculpting and crafting terrain mostly for his own enjoyment and to make D&D games more spectacular. Nicholas enjoys teaching and is also regular teaching staff at the Palo Alto Adult School where he teaches woodworking.

David Powell is a miniature painter with over a decade of experience painting at a competition level. He's won gold medals at numerous shows and competitions including Crystal Brush, MFCA, NOVA Open, 'Eadbanger, and others, as well as Best of Show at KublaCon last year. He enjoys mentoring students and teaching workshops. He's been a long time contributor for FigureMentors and is one of the editors at Putty & Paint.

See more of his work at https://www.puttyandpaint.com/bailey03

Dev has been painting off and on for 25 years. As an Army commission painter - he specialises in techniques to paint models that look amazing, FAST. Recently he's taken up the mantle of sharing these discoveries in convention classes and through online 1:1 classes. He has won medals in numerous painting competitions and scale modelling contests including a Golden Demon Finalist.

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