Who is Doug Cottrell?
I am an artist in London, Canada. I have a BA and MA in English from the University of Western Ontario. I also studied Art History and Studio Art and have dabbled in painting, drawing, print-making, photography and digital art. I am self-taught in graphic design and have worked in the publishing industry since 1998. As a kid, I collected action figures, and as an adult I have rekindled this passion. In the early 1990s, I brought my passion for art and for action figure collecting together and began to make my own figures. I put this site together to collect all of the various projects I have worked on in the past. This is not an exhaustive gallery, but it gives you a good idea of my work.
What is a custom figure?
A custom figure is essentially an action figure made from existing pieces of other action figures. In some cases, a custom can be a simple repaint, or a head-swap. In my work, I do a great deal of sculpting and painting as well as mixing up parts, to get the best likeness possible. When I decide to make a custom figure, I have to find parts that suit the scale as well as the likeness, and then I go from there. These are one of a kind pieces and not intended for mass production.
Are these for sale?
No. Most of these are in my own personal collection, though some have been commissioned.
If I ask you to make something for me, will you?
Yes, I do take commissions. I cannot give an estimate of the cost without an idea of the project, so if you would like an estimate, send me an email with an outline of what you are looking for.
Can you teach me how to make custom figures?
If you have a specific request, I can tell you how I made any of the figures shown on this site. I don't keep the recipes secret. The reason I don't post all the information about what goes into making a figure on here is just lack of time. I prefer to spend my time creating new projects than writing about them.
What do you use to make custom figures?
While I don't consider myself a novice in the craft, I do think I have much to learn still. Some customizers cast their own parts in plastic or resin. I have yet to do any mold-making myself. I use a compound called Super Sculpey for sculpting. It is a malleable clay that becomes rock solid when boiled or baked. Anyone who is working in the scale I do (4" or 6" typically) should invest in a rotary tool (such as Dremel) for carving, drilling and sanding. I use plain old fine grit sandpaper to do a final sand by hand once the sculpting is finished. For painting, I have always used Liquitex artist acrylics.
