Dan Dugal Miniature Art

09/03/2026

Hello There
Here is my contribution to this year's Galactic Civil War community painting event, being unveild at the Nova Open Capital Palette. I was unable to attend the convention this year, but I am happy to present my first box diorama! I was given R2D2 and C3P0, two of my favorite characters from the series. I didn't want to depict them walking across the sands of Tatooine I've seen several depictions of that scene in miniature already, and didn't think I would add much to that scene. Instead, I chose to recreate the medical room on the Redemption, a modified Nebulon-B es**rt frigate where, at the end of Empire Strikes Back, Luke was fitted with his mechanical hand.

This scene shows R2D2 and C3P0 between takes, looking out the window at you, the viewer. C3P0 waves politely as only a protocol droid would.

I had a lot of fun creating this piece, and I learned a great deal about building and assembling a box, complete with LED lighting for this event. I'm not sure I'll be building many more box diaramas, but I did pick up some tools and skills that will be very useful in future diaramas. I hope you enjoy it, and all of the Galactic Civil War entries.

Special thanks to Kyle Dalton and Bob Cohooon for organizing the event and herding all of us cats who participated.

Figures and bits by Atomic Mass Games

08/13/2026

Color Theory at LVO
I'm attending and teaching at LVO for the first time! I'm so excited to be going to LVO this year, and I'm bringing my color theory class with me.

If you've ever struggled with picking colors, trying to find the perfect recipe, or gotten frustrated when trying to mix paint, this class is for you!

Join me on Friday evening to learn how to conquer these challenges, and learn how to go beyond the theory and apply color to make your minis look better than ever. I look forward to seeing you!

Check my linktree in bio to sign up today.

08/07/2026

The Mental Game at LVO
I'm attending and teaching at LVO for the first time! I'm so excited to be going to LVO this year, and I'm bringing my most popular class with me.

If you've ever struggled with mental blocks, procrastination, motivation, failures, and more, this class is for you!

Join me for either of 2 sessions on Saturday evening to learn how to conquer these challenges, and learn what cognitive science tells us about getting better at this (or any) skill. I look forward to seeing you!

07/28/2026

The Sharpest Rose (Drow)
This was a fun and very enlightening group project. A group of friends and I all decided to paint this wonderful bust by Hugo Gómez Briones (available as a free stl download from his myminifactory and gumroad! get yours now.)

There was no competition, no deadline, no prompts other than we all decided to to take on the same project in each our own way. We were each available to help each other, provide feedback and accolades. It's really wonderful to see how a group of your friends all interpret the same figure differently. You gain insight to the choices they make as you had to solve the same problems or make decisions on the same aspects of the figure. It's a wonderful way to grow and learn as an artist, and with a group of your peers. I would encourage anyone to do the same.

Special Thanks:
David Powell David Powell
Ryan Nerdyconniptions
Devin Bush Devin Bush
Roxana Roxana
John Adams John Adams
Ethan Lindquist Ethan Lindquist
Dave Szymanik Dave Szymanik
Evan Evan P
Matt DiPietro Matt DiPietro
Layne Keeping Layne Keeping
(and anyone I've forgotten)

Sculpted by: Hugo Gómez Briones Hugo Gómez Briones
Produced by: Hugo Gómez Briones

07/11/2026

RPG Summer Camp 2026
For the second year, I've volunteered to to go teach miniature painting to the High School kids that come to RPG Summer Camp at Washington High School. Dan and Tom, aka.
work incredibly hard and coordinate with a multitude of volunteers from around the community to put on an entire week of activities - all centered around Role Playing Games; from learning to create a character, running games, building terrain, painting minis, and more. I am so happy to be able to contribute.

06/23/2026

New Studio
I've been pretty quiet here, not posting much or often since Adepticon, and this is the reason why. I've been renovating a room in my basement to use as my new studio.

Father's Day marked 8 years since I first picked up a brush and started painting miniatures. Most of that time was spent in a 9x10 spare bedroom that I used as my previous studio. I remember when I first moved in. I had an entire room, just for painting. I was ecstatic. But over these last 8 years, as my collection of tools, paints, models, and more has continued to grow, I found more and more cramped for space. I will always think of that first studio with fondness, but it was time for something new. Something bigger.

My wife suggested that I take this room, as it has almost three times the amount of space. When I returned from Adepticon, I got started taking everything out of the room and pulling up old carpeting. Fresh paint, new flooring, a large new desk built of butcher block countertop, and more. It's been a lot of work for a couple of months, but it's finally finished. I look forward to creating and painting in this new space.

05/05/2026

Hey friends, I've started a podcast with my friend Devin Bush! Here is the first episode. Hope you like it!

In this episode, Dan and Devin explore the emotional journey of repairing your relationship with miniature painting, overcoming imposter syndrome, and reigni...

05/03/2026

Adepticon 2026 (Long overdue post)
It's been a month since Adepticon 2026 and this post is very long overdue, but I wanted to share a few pictures and say that I had an amazing time. First, students in my classes were happy - and that always makes me happy. It's very fulfilling to be able to share some of what I've learned over the years with other painters who are making their way in their own journeys. To every student from this year, I want to extend an heartfelt thank you!

I wasn't just an instructor, I was also a student. I spent some one-on-one time with learning more about vibrant undercoats and 'blending' using paint transparency on a beautiful dwarf bust. It was an enlightening session and I have much to practice from our time together. Did you know that Enric has written a book, just for us miniature painters? It's called "Behind the Brush", and I recently finished reading it and absolutely loved it. For anyone who has taken my Mental Game class, you are sure to enjoy Enric's book. I highly recommend it! I think Enric and I are going to become great friends.

I also spent some one-on-one time with and . What can I say about Francesco? He's truly one of the very best instructors in this art. The way he tailors instruction to the student, where they are in their journey to help them take the next step, or, in my case, showing me the river which must be crossed in my own journey. Thank you Francesco, I can't wait to see you again at LVO.

Finally, saving the best for last, are the friends I was able to spend time with, the new friends I met, and the ability to bathe in the community that nourishes me. Thank you all! We spend so much time in isolation with our art that conventions like Adepticon are a welcome chance to reconnect with the people we love.