Man with an obsession
Meet Alexander Allan Arevalo, online marketing and art director of Halimaw! Sculptures, a business he shares with his partner and producer Jay Sia, who is based in the Philippines. They create custom-made statues of all sorts and sizes, but a majority of their work is based on Marvel, DC and characters from video games which you can find in the upcoming Middle East Film and Comic Con (MEFCC).
A hobby becomes a business
Growing up, it seems AAA never out shed his fascination and love for collectibles. Just like any avid collector, it started out with toys as a little boy but it didn’t stop there – it just got more expensive as he grew older. He then decided instead to create his own sculptures which his friends saw and asked for replicas. Everything else is history.
Sculpting for a living
It wasn’t as easy as it sounds to get into sculpting. In fact, Alexander didn’t discover his love for it until he learned about the huge pool of talented fellow sculptors in the Philippines. When asked if sculpting is hard, Alexander replies “it’s not hard but it takes time.” It seems a lot of time indeed; the whole prototyping process takes about 2-3 months depending on the size. But once done, the proudly Pinoy duo teams up as caster and painter and are able to finish about 10 pieces per month.
Still collecting
Collecting is something everyone subconsciously does. “I think pretty much everyone has something that catches their fancy and collects if they have the extra cash to spare,” says Alexander. Statues are Alexander’s stress busters; he finds it relaxing to come home at the end of the day to a room full of collectibles he is fond of. His wife loves them too since it encourages him to stay at home.
Alexander’s dream
Being his day job, sculpting gives Alexander the freedom to choose his working hours. It may seem a little strange for his team to be in the Philippines while he’s here in the UAE, but it works. He takes care of the front end of things while his partner works the other way around and they manage to make ends meet. Alexander’s dream is to create an excellent piece, mass produce it and sell it worldwide.
Good advice
Alexander didn’t just get to this point overnight. His advice is simple. “Practice! It’s not something you can learn just by reading or watching videos. You’ll get ideas from it of course but you need to train those hands. Study anatomy too if you’re doing human sculptures; proportions are important. Did you know that a perfect human body is 8 heads high?”
To find out more about Halimaw!, their works and their appearance at the MEFCC, log onto http://www.dtoycollector.blogspot.com/
