The Evolution of Wilma & Vladimir

Looking back at the astronaut projects I realized how much they evolved from the first astronauts based on the models designed by Momo for the "Beyond your imagination" challenge.

Finding a shape that could carry a story

While I really love those astronauts and enjoy working with them (obviously, given all the astronaut projects), I came to realize I needed a format that was a bit more flexible — something that could work in a variety of settings, not just space suits.

Like a British "bobby"

How about the Fellowship of the Ring?

The first experiments — without a helmet, just heads — were only semi-successful, but funny nonetheless :)

After some consideration, I decided to design a new body — still very stylized, since that stylization is exactly what makes the astronauts so charming. As stylized as they are, you can project all kinds of roles and personalities onto them.

The first iteration wasn't so bad, and I experimented with a few different roles for it.

Gee, sometimes I really wonder about myself — Slash?!?

But the model worked really well for several of my projects.

Wilma and Vladimir take the lead

In these projects I picked "Wilma & Vladimir" back up, continuing and deepening their story. They stopped being just two recurring models — Wilma and Vladimir had developed their own personalities, and increasingly the projects were built around them, rather than the other way round.

Like the Beach Campers

Or the Selfies

But somehow, being astronauts was also a bit limiting. Don't get me wrong — Wilma & Vladimir will always be astronauts at heart, but they're also scientists and explorers.

So I looked into new roles for them: this (female) archaeologist,

Or Indiana Jones 

I even designed and built a huge 8x8 explorer vehicle to go with the new direction.

Getting the face right (the hard way)

But what about a face? Ouch! Almost like on the original bodies!

So another round of body modification was in order. Some elements did carry over to later versions, but nothing here would easily work.

Nope! Absolutely not!

Let's start from scratch, then, and make it a bit more realistic — still stylized, but with better proportions.

Let's start from scratch, then, and make it a bit more realistic — still stylized, but with better proportions.

to a baby-face style.

And that baby face could actually work!

And so Adventure Wilma was born — complete with some equipment to match.

And what about Vladimir?

I had that really crazy idea, based on this amazing Polish paratrooper

Damn! That's a character!
Could I baby face him?

Well, I did :)

Vladimir the Adventurer!

With separated pieces, the models turned out to be relatively easy to pose.

Though not every pose really works out in the end — and not only the pose; the hover-bike was also a bit of a clunker.

But with some facial variations, almost everything becomes possible. And they're TINY!

Growing the cast

As their story continued — at least in my head — I started envisioning sidekicks. After all, they couldn't carry an entire universe by themselves, could they? In "Are We Lost," there are already three astronauts.

With the style and level of detail now settled, I decided to give GB-2 a try. He'd be the muscle — good-natured, stoic backup, there to do the heavy lifting and handle the mundane tasks while Wilma & Vladimir had their adventuring fun. GB-2 is, admittedly, very strongly based on K2SO from Star Wars.

And with that, the little cast around Wilma and Vladimir slowly started to grow. There's more to come — later.

These models then went on to star in "First Steps" (workbench post to come!)

and in "A Storm Is Rising" (another workbench post I still owe you!).

Building out the story world

I had previously built "Window to the Stars" (also known as "Longing for Home"), where Wilma is stranded on a derelict space station, trying to find her way back.

To further develop the story, I thought about how Wilma and Vladimir first met — at the Academy.

And as part of my "Bembel 2026" entry in the "Storytelling – Master" category, I built "Where Our Shadows Touch" (yes, Vladimir was still missing his mustache back then).

Toward realism

And so Wilma and Vladimir continue to evolve — even becoming more realistic.

        
Vladimir was the first to get a fully realistic sculpted head. I think I went a bit over the top and made him older than originally planned — but the wrinkles add so much character that it's easy to overdo it.

As a special gag for the "Beyond the hatch" project I attempted to sculpt CWO Klausz with myself as reference. Admittedly, I "optimized" myself a little :) — but who wouldn't, given the chance?

And so I had all three figures ready for "Beyond the Hatch."

But I don't think this is the end of the evolution. The stylized versions are here to stay, and I'll keep using them — like in "I Know the Way" (workbench post to come!)

or in "Carsendo Base" (yes — yet another workbench post I owe you; you can spot GB-2 in the background, lugging boxes).

A new Wilma bust

Once I had Wilma's face worked out on paper, I wanted to see whether I could sculpt it. And so with the "original" Wilma in mind 

I am currently working on a new Wilma bust.

She's not perfect yet, but I'll get there. She's come a long way, and I'm sure there are still many adventures ahead for her :)

Remember, I envisioned her as my go-to heroine — a mix of Miss Marple, Adèle Blanc-Sec, Natacha, and Barbarella: a traveler between worlds, in the spirit of the STORM comic series.

Where this leaves things

So this isn't really a straight evolution from stylized to realistic — both versions have found their place in my little universe. I have ideas for a "Traveller's Guide to the Universe," as well as "Journeys of Memory," a notebook-style picture book built around the dioramas. I even have the completely insane vision of a comic made entirely from Wilma & Vladimir dioramas. (Yeah, yeah, shake your head. We'll see.)

The tiny, stylized Wilma and Vladimir remain perfect for telling their stories through dioramas, while the more realistic versions let me explore the characters in a completely different way.

Let's see what's next!