As someone who paints mainly Warhammer miniatures, I often paint in what’s known as “Grimdark” style. This term applies both to the narrative (“In the grim, dark future, there is only war”) and to the painting style itself, which emphasises a gritty, weathered look with battle damage and grime.
Within grimdark, there’s a spectrum, from simply shadowed effects just using things like “Nuln Oil” shading, to the intense enamel painting that embodies the full “Grimdark” experience that you see with Kendon Oates work.
But I’ve always been curious about the opposite of this style: that bright, clean, shiny 80’s aesthetic seen in settings like Star Trek and exemplified in Corvus Belli promotion pictures. 1
I recently discovered that the narrative name for this is “hope punk”. Settings like Star Wars and Star Trek fall into this category, but I could never find a painting equivalent or good guides on achieving such a look. Thankfully, I’ve recently found both.
And while I’m not completely satisfied with the term 2, “iPod Future” seems to fit: it’s that sleek, chrome, brand-new world look I was after.
As for guides, there were many subpar resources, but Corvus Belli came to the rescue for a formal book, specifically through Angel Giraldez’s Masterclass Volumes 1 and 2 3.
Some key features that distinguish “iPod Future” from “Grimdark” are:
- Glazing with lighter colours instead of dark tones.
- Highlighting up to near-white layered highlights.
- Using coloured washes instead of traditional dark shades.
- layered highlights 4
So there you go, hope this helps someone else on the same search as me, I finish with a definition of “iPod Future painting” :
“It’s a nightmare realm of none metallic metals, glazes, and prodigious tactical use of off-whites and pure whites to create lens flare effects.”