Tell us about yourself!
Quequinox Art is run by Janine Haq. I live in Toronto and I work full time as an occupational therapist. I of course adore horses and try to spend as much time around them as I can, taking riding lessons, part leasing horses, or watching racing.  In addition to sculpture, I enjoy drawing, photography, and cooking. I do sculpture as a hobby and a form of relaxation and self-care, and enjoy it very much.
How did you get into art and sculpting?
I’ve always liked doing art, from the time I was really young. When I was in grade school I really loved whales and dolphins in addition to horses and drew those all the time. I was always artistic as a child and like to draw and do all sorts of crafts.
I took a few pottery classes when I was around 12 years old and learned some basics like kneading, about tools, and using a pottery wheel. After that I only took art classes in high school as an elective. I used stoneware clay again a few times in these classes but never considered doing it more often or at home. It seemed to me something you needed a big studio and a lot of money to do. It wasn’t until I got more active on deviantart.com that I realized there were types of high quality artist clays that you could bake in a kitchen oven.
I discovered polymer clay and apoxie sculpt. Initially when I started making unicorns, I created each using apoxie sculpt only. I had heard of super sculpey and eventually gave it a try. My first polymer clay sculpture was actually a bird. My first horse was a pink haired pony that I named “Lithium”.
Do you use reference photos or models? Do you have any recommendations for where to find references?
Reference photos are essential, I certainly recommend keeping a large base of photos. Save everything, even if it's just for inspiration. Clear, high quality photographs of horses from all sorts of angles are quite helpful. There are certain areas that you would never worry about while drawing that may take you by surprise when trying to reproduce them in sculpture. In addition, I highly recommend studying skeletons. Knowing the skeleton of what you're trying to sculpt will really help you with proportions and realistic movement and poses. It's also helpful to base your armature on the skeleton of what you're sculpting. I don't have specific recommendations for reference websites, but there's a great book called "animal anatomy for artists" by Ellenberger that is a great starting point.
What type of clay do you use? 
I use either sculpey clay (medium firm) or apoxie sculpt. Sculpey clay has to be baked whereas apoxie is air drying. These are both good quality clays and use of either depends on preference. I tend to use sculpey for my one of a kind models and apoxie sculpt for things I plan to have cast. 
How do you make armatures? What type of wire is best?
I just use galvanized steel wire or floral wire, you can buy it at any hardware store. I use one long wire for the head, neck, spine, and tail, and then two “U” shaped wires for the front and back legs. Finally I have a very thin wire I use to wrap around the other three to hold them. For the legs I usually use very thick wire, 12 or 14 gauge. The body is usually 14 or 16 gauge, and the really thin stuff I think is 24 gaug. I also bulk out with tin foil. I would recommend making the armature as sturdy as possible, without wires wiggling around at all. It should also balance; if the armature won’t stand the sculpture won’t either. I also like to use apoxie sculpt or some other type of epoxy putty to reinforce the armature so it doesn't wiggle.  
How do you bake the polymer clay? What type of oven is needed? What about the clay burning, cracking, or exploding?
I use a small convection oven from Walmart which cost about $100. Convection ovens heat things up more evenly than gas ovens, though any kitchen oven can be used. I tend to bake my sculptures according to the instructions for the most part, but depending on the thickness of the sculpture I tend to overbake my clay at a lower temperature. I find polymer clay is tolerant for overbaking but can be very crumbly when underbaked. Another tip I have is to put quilt batting or some form of polyfil stuffing under the sculpture when you bake it. It will not burn and will cushion the clay during baking. 
What tools do you use to sculpt? What techniques do you use to carve details and muscles?
I use many varieties of tools including metal dental tools, ball styluses, exacto knife, and rubber silicone tipped tools. My best advice is to try different things and see what works for your style. 
What kind of paint do you use?
I use Golden brand acrylic paint and a Golden brand polymer varnish (paint on). 
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What do you use for hair? Where do you get it? How do you attach it? Do you bake with the hair on?
The hair I use for many of my sculptures comes from goats or lambs. When searching for hair to buy, try using key words like “mohair weft” “doll hair mohair” or similar. I buy most of my mohair from stores on etsy or a website called mohairwig.com.
Do you have any tutorials? Do you know of any other good ones that others have made?
I have old tutorials on my deviantart page (which is no longer updated) and am working on writing an e-book on how to sculpt horses.
DeviantArt Links: 
My sculpting tutorial:    www.scenceable.deviantart.com
My Baking Tutorial:      www.scenceable.deviantart.com/gallery
My “hairing” tutorial:    www.scenceable.deviantart.com/gallery
Do you take commissions? 
I generally do not take commissions any longer. I will occasionally take painting commissions for my own resins, but rarely take commissions for full sculptures. 
Do you take requests for sculptures? What about art trades? 
I do not accept either of these. 
Where do you sell sculptures?
I typically list anything currently for sale in my etsy shop. 
What websites are you most active on? Where can I follow your work?
Please see the following links, I am most active on instagram and facebook.
Website:        www.quequinoxart.com
Instagram      www.instagram.com/quequinoxart
Deviantart:     www.scenceable.deviantart.com
Facebook:     www.facebook.com/quequinoxart
Etsy Shop:     www.etsy.com/shop/scenceable
Ebay:            www.myworld.ebay.ca/quequinox_art
Youtube:       www.youtube.com/user/scenceable
Twitter:          www.twitter.com/#!/QuequinoxArt
Tumblr:         www.quequinoxart.tumblr.com
FurAffinity:     www.furaffinity.net/user/scenceable
I still have a question!
Feel free to DM or email me. Please keep in mind that I am not a full time artist, and any time taken to explain techniques, answer questions, or reply to emails takes away from my actual art time. As such, I may decline to answer in-depth questions about technique or materials. However, I always try be best, as I know starting out can be hard!
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