Painting Competition | Winner Announcement | Magnum Opus | June 2026
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Our Monthly Painting Competition returned once again this month, this time focused on our latest release: Magnum Opus. This release from our popular Anatomists faction, a disturbing order of flesh-crafters, surgical zealots and makers of grotesque living artworks, gave painters plenty to work with and the community certainly delivered. Throughout the month we saw everything from restrained anatomical studies and unsettling specimen-like pieces to vibrant displays of exposed flesh, twisted experimentation and imaginative reinterpretations of the release.
This month also marked the introduction of our brand new Rookie and Veteran League format.
Participants were free to choose which category suited them best: in the Rookie League, three winners were decided entirely through community voting, while in the Veteran League, a single winner was selected by the Bestiarum Team. It was wonderful to see painters of all experience levels join in and interpret the release in their own unique ways.
Below you’ll find the Rookie League winners chosen by the community and our Veteran League winner selected by the Bestiarum Team.
Competition Results
Rookie League - Community Vote Winners
These entries were voted as this month's top 3 by the members of our community Discord server - congratulations!
Entry #1 - "A quick scuttle over the rocks" by Bo-Pepper
Our first Rookie League winner "Bo-Pepper" tackled The Howling Head, Anatomist Masterwork and fully embraced the grotesque spectacle of one of the release’s most iconic models. Using a rich palette of bruised purples, inflamed reds and raw flesh tones to emphasise the miniature's grotesque anatomy. The smooth transitions across the skin give the surface a disturbingly organic quality, while carefully placed highlights and subtle colour variation prevent the large areas of flesh from feeling flat or repetitive.
Every detail, from the creature's piercing yellow-green eyes to the yellowed teeth and wet interior of the gaping maw, has been given just enough contrast to draw the viewer's attention without overwhelming the composition, creating a wonderfully horrifying result.
Entry #2 - "Pinky Promise" by Uvemode
Our second Rookie League winner painted The Finger, one of Pierrot’s earliest and more restrained creations. Rather than leaning heavily into gore or dramatic effects, "Uvemode" chose a softer and more bright approach with subtle flesh tones and clean shading that allow the unusual anatomy of the sculpt to take centre stage. Great work!
Entry #3 - "The Thing Levelled Up" by TheUrizen
Our final Rookie League winner "TheUrizen" took on The Grasp and presented this chaotic mass of stitched bodies in a colder and more subdued style. Pale flesh tones contrasted with deep reds in the exposed wounds create a strong focal point while the weathered base adds atmosphere without distracting from the sculpt itself.
Despite the complexity of the sculpt, the clean execution keeps every detail readable and allows the many stitched forms to remain distinct. A great and memorable take on one of the release’s most disturbing models!
Bestiarum Vote - Veteran League Winner
This month, the Bestiarum Team selected "Hell is a dark forest, where your dad opens his ribcage and invites you to dance" by Rudelol (@rickabyminiatures) as the first ever winner of our Veteran League!
Rather than approaching the release as a traditional miniature project, Rudelol took one of the release’s Sewn Vessels and transformed it into a striking display bust. It was a bold creative decision that immediately caught the team's attention as it draws clear parallels to the anatomical specimens which would be displayed within one of the Anatomists' own fleshworked sanctums.
The painting is every bit as striking as the concept itself. Rich, vibrant flesh tones are balanced with vivid purples, blues and reds to create a palette that feels both unsettling and surprisingly beautiful. Smooth blends across the musculature and carefully controlled highlights give the sculpt a convincing organic quality, while the dramatic lighting adds depth and definition without sacrificing the clarity of the colours. Every element, from the exposed tissue to the stitched seams and exposed entrails, is rendered with clean execution, resulting in a piece that immediately draws the eye and rewards closer inspection.
With an inventive presentation and excellent technical execution, this entry felt incredibly fitting for a faction centred around experimentation and the reshaping of flesh into grotesque works of art, resulting in a wonderfully original interpretation of the release. Congratulations!
A huge congratulations from us to all of our winners!
It was especially exciting to see the new Rookie and Veteran format in action for the first time and to watch so many different approaches emerge from the same release. Some painters leaned into atmosphere and subtlety, others embraced colour, texture and body horror, but every entry brought something personal to the table.
Now let's talk rewards: Rookie League winners will each receive a digital product of choice, whereas our Veteran League winner will receive an STL collection of choice and an honorary title on the server, as well as getting the opportunity to paint an exclusive preview model from an upcoming release ahead of its reveal. .
Thank you again to everyone who participated this month and shared their progress throughout the competition. Watching these creations come together has been an absolute joy and we’re excited to see how the new format continues to evolve in future competitions.
Veteran League Entries
Rookie League Entries
If you'd like to participate in next month's competition, make sure to join our Discord server, head on over to the Monthly Competition channel and check out the rules in the pinned messages!