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Translation :
Daniel Serrano
Hi, my name is Alfonso Prado Vilares
and I was born in La Corunna on 31st
october in 1975. I’ve always thought
that this city was getting smaller
for me, but I’ve never moved away
because I need to get close to my
friends and family, whom I’m very
close. I work in a dental prothesic
laboratory since a few months ago so
I’m having less time to dedicate to
the hobby, now I don’t remember if I
used a flat or rounded brush to
paint!! On weekends I work in a pub
to get some extra money to spend in
trips to shows. Apart from
miniatures, I also spend a lot of
money in my other hobby, the music.
Before I dedicated to dental
prothesis I studied Maritime
Navigation, I think I have 3 or 4
terms to get my diploma, but I can’t
do nothing because I never liked
those studies. In those univeristary
years I worked in a local hobby shop
painting figures, in a pub, in a
music store, in a café… I’m starting
to get tired as I remember!
I
started as many others; when I was
10 my aunt bought me for Christmas a
helicopter and two planes in 1/72
scale. I remember perfectly, the
helicopter was from Vietnam and it
was the first kit I built, If you
can say so because there was more
glue than plastic, what … Later I
started to collect Esci kits, tanks
in 1/72, painting the figures in
that scale. When I was 15 I jumped
to 1/35 scale, with Tamiya kits, and
that was the moment when I started
to pay more attention on the
figures. I was 18 more or less when
my brother talked to me about a show
organized by the club “Agrupación
Cultural Escala” in the old
“Estación marítima de la Coruña”.
There’s were I met some of my
friends these days like Luis Esteban
Laguardia (who I owe him everything
in the hobby), Chema García and
Manuel Picatoste. They showed me
painting techniques, manufacturers,
scales and told me about artists
like Raul G. Latorre and Bill Horan,
and about shows like Folkestone.
Encouraged by my parents, I joined
the club Escala where I shared great
time with great people for almost a
decade. There’s were I met Juan
Ávila, a great person and a great
master. My first important national
show I think it was in 1997, in the
Forum Metropolitano at La Corunna,
sponsored by Escala. I got some
awards in dioramas and military
vehicles. I remember very well that
show because of the great national
painters that attended the show and
because I didn’t get any award in
the Figures category. Juan Ávila’s
and Gros brother’s figures were
awesome and they blew my mind. Those
guys have been a reference for me
since then. After that I left the
world of figures to focus again in
the military vehicles. I come back
to figures because of a good
friend’s shop called Diorama, where
I spent my spare time painting
figures for collectors, with help
from my friend Santiago Doel. I
spent the money I got in figures and
then is when Luis Esteban asks me to
go to Leon Rampante Show. It was its
second edition, I was amazed and I
learnt a lot watching other
painter’s works. I did a lot of good
friends (Luis Sanz Larrey, César de
la Peña, Patxi Vacas…), I saw
figures of some of the greatest
painters in Spain (Gallardo,
Gamarra, Román Navarro…) that I only
have seen in magazines, and as
everyone’s first time, I just wanted
to go back home to paint and paint!
What has been a great help for me
has been those meetings with my
friends (Chema García, Chemita,
Antonio Dafonte, Bernardo Díez, Luís
Ontañón…) every Friday, sharing
ideas and techniques. The next year,
I got my first gold awards in León
Rampante and since then I’ve
repeated the prize. Another show
that I remember best is Soldat de
Plom at Girona, where I met my
friends Raul Garcia Latorre, Jose
Manuel Palomares, Julio Cabos y Pepe
Rando … Next two years in
Folkestone, I got gold medals, and
lately in Aosta too. For me, it’s
the best show today, because of its
level and situation.
My
favourite manufacturers are Andrea,
Elite, Pegaso and Hornet. I used to
paint resin figures but today I only
paint 54mm metal figures. My
favourite historical theme is WWII,
samurais, ACW, 100 years war,
hoplites and among all, highlanders.
I can’t stand painting pirates or
wild west figures. I also can’t
paint any figura with black clothes.
I use to paint using Vallejo, Andrea
and Humbrol. I don’t use flat base
and I use airbrush often but I apply
varnish with a brush.
Painters that have been a reference
for me, these two, Luis Esteban
Laguardia and Juan Ávila, because of
being so close and their priceless
advices. I would like to remark
Jaume Ortiz and Julio Cabos too.
International painters, I love
Philip Parison, Danid Lane, Hardy
Aaron Tempest, Danilo Cartacci and
Massimo Pasquali. Sculptors that I
like: Kostas Kariotelis, Bill Horan,
Adrian Bay, Gianfranco Speranza,
Marijn Van Gils, Calvin Tan and Mike
Blank. I would like to remark Raul
García Latorre because the
perfection of his works.
There are some several Spanish
painters that have a great future
and I watch for them with great
interest, but among all, I would
remark Samuel Pérez and Daniel
Serrano.
The future of our hobby seems
complex, it looks like young
painters are pointing towards the
fantasy root and there is a lack of
new figures in some manufacturers.
We have to ask ourselves, is fantasy
the future of our hobby?
I
would like to give a huge hug to all
the people that I’ve met in those
years because of the hobby, I
haven’t forget them although I don’t
mention them in the text. The most
important thing in the hobby are the
friends and the good moments I’ve
had speaking with them about
figures, at least, that’s what
really comfort me.
Regards,
Alfonsito!
Vista General de la Vitrina de
Trofeos y la Vitrina de Figuras de
Alfonso Prado
Galeria Alfonso Prado
Album Alfonso Prado
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