Per Arne Rikvold, Tallahassee, Florida
Per took the plunge to build Bandai’s 1/48 scale Japanese model of the deep-sea submersible Shinkai 6500, which held the world record for depth reached by a crewed research submersible (6,500m/21,325') until 2012, when the Chinese submersible Jiaolong dove to 7,015m (23,015'). He modeled the snap-together kit as a cutaway model, adding some electrical wire to mimic power cables and hydraulic hoses. “I did not like the flimsy ‘airplane-in-flight’ display stand with the kit, so I made a deep-sea ‘rock’ from Apoxie Sculpt. It is supported on a scaffolding of sculptor’s aluminum webbing wrapped around the kit’s stand. I patterned the surface with a spoon handle, mixed water and white glue with some mud from my backyard, poured it over, then sprinkled it with Woodland Scenics light gray gravel. After complete drying, I fixed the surface with several coats of Utrecht artist’s spray fixative.”