Bel is actually who I had in mind when I posted about SS likely trying too hard and mucking it up.
Bel is certainly an awesome sculptor. I don't mean to take anything away from his ability or his previous efforts.
But he is more of what I think of as an "outside in" artist. He does a great job of twisting and turning figures to emphasize immediately gleaned surface detail- muscles, textures, etc.
It's great craftsmanship, and displays a high level of anatomical knowledge, beautifully realized.
However when I look at work by someone like Harbottle, I see an artist who works from the inside out.
That is, they remind me of an animators approach. It's less about dazzling you with surface details and more about interpreting movement and mass.
If Harbottle doesn't actually get up out of his chair and act out the various character he works on at certain points in the process, I would be surprised. At the very least his work looks like that's what he does. There is almost always a grace and naturalism to how his figures inhabit their space or react to their environments. That kind of naturalism usually only comes from feeling the character in the moment, acting the scene you're trying to represent out. Nott just envisioning what would look cool or dynamic on paper. It goes beyond just looking in the mirror as you pose.
The Red Sonja he did, with the snake, is not a dynamic pose at all. She's merely in stride. It's a remarkable piece though because her physicality is spot on. Weight distribution, the tension of certain muscles with the relaxation of others- all contribute to the figure feeling natural and "true".
The Surfer isn't a detailed character. He conveys two main things visually- he's moves quickly and sleekly, and he's supremely smooth and gleamingly bright.
Bel's strong suits are the exact things that are at odds with the character- fingers splayed, 'roided out musculature, set to a dynamic pose...that's going to appeal to the main demo here, I suppose. But's it would also be kind of generic and reductive to me. Sort of like how Flash looks like a typical superhero gym rat in a running pose instead of... a runner with a runner's high metabolism physique.
But, again the main SS demo here loves that approach, so I'm once again just yelling at clouds.
Like I said, I have enormous respect for Bel. This is just one instance where I don't see the artist's strengths being naturally in line with the character choice.
Then again, who knows? I might end up being totally surprised by the final result.