Eagle

Several decades ago, during my working years, if any hobby or pastime interested me then I would put it on the back burner and make a mental note to look into it properly as and when I retired. I'd heard many stories of people retiring and becoming lost, spending much of their time sat in front of the tv not knowing what else they could do. It saddened me and I knew I didn't want to become one of those people. It was a successful strategy because I now have so many interests, there aren't enough hours in the day for all I want to do. 

That said, I often find myself reflecting on the opposing ideas of two well known sayings - "Jack of all trades, master of none" and "Variety is the spice of life". My conclusion - try to be good at what you do but mix it up and enjoy the journey.

So as I bounce from one hobby to the next I realise it's been a while since I last did any Pyrography, so I decided to break out my wood burner and have a play. This time I chose an Eagles head which I burnt onto a 8"x6" piece of 4mm Plywood. As always, there are parts of this that I'd have liked to have done better but I think the overall effect isn't too bad.

Previous posts on Pyrography

Lion

Canal Cottages

Old boat shed

3D Pattern

Some of you will be aware that I am using Marquetry to decorate the drawer fronts of a small, plain wood, desk storage unit. The drawers serve as my 'practice canvas' and allow me to learn and try various marquetry designs and techniques. 

I've now tackled the 5th drawer of the unit and decided to try my hand at a repetitive geometric design. The 'stacked cubes' design is a common one in marquetry so I thought it would be a good one to try.

Although you would expect designs with cut out irregular shapes, like flowers, to be the hardest, I actually found this to be the most difficult so far. Unless every single diamond-shaped piece is identical, the pieces won't align exactly. 

Thoroughly enjoyed the process though and only one more drawer left to do.... and that's going to be rather special.

Previous posts on Marquetry

Tulip

Daffodil

Oak Tree

Target House

In the gardens of  Bodsworth Hall in Yorkshire can be found this unique Swiss-style Target House. With its overhanging roof and Venetian window, the house was built in 1866 as the Archery House, and was used to store Bows and Arrows and related archery paraphernalia. The owners, the Thellusson family, used it as a place of rest and relaxation, frequently inviting friends and family to join them for an afternoon tournament. Back in the day, archery on the target range would have been a grand social occasion.

During the Second World War the house was requisitioned by the Army and the soldiers would use the long range nearby for target practice, hence the change of name which has stuck until this day.

Painted using Pen and Wash from a reference photo submitted to the Forum's monthly painting challenge by one of the members.

World War II Diorama - Part 4

The final stage of the diorama is to paint and position each of the tiny soldiers. What I hadn't anticipated is how fiddly this process is. Sanding each figure to remove plastic burs and spurs from the moulding process is something I found hugely difficult. Removing the excess plastic without losing the detail is a fine balancing act. 

Painting each figure requires the finest brushes I have, and my aging eye sight provided an extra challenge. In the end I resorted to using a head magnifier. 

As modellers will know, each of the tiny figures stands on it's own rectangular base. In order to make the scene as realistic as possible I've separated each figure from it's base. This means each figure will need to be glued into place. I know some modellers like to be able to move their figures around creating different scenario's, but that is something I'm prepared to forego.

Now the diorama is complete and I study the photographs, I wish I'd paid more attention to the moulding seams of the figures. The kneeling soldier (top photo) has a distinct line across his helmet, and the guy lying prone, bottom centre, has a pronounced line running the length of his body. 

One day I may come back to this model and refine some of its faults but for now, it's purpose as a practice piece and introduction to scale modelling, has been served. I'm keen to get started on the larger "Operation Overlord" diorama which is what sparked this journey in the first place. 

More posts about this diorama

D-Day Diorama
Part 1

D-Day Diorama
Part 2

D-Day Diorama
Part 3

World War II Diorama - Part 3

So my efforts continue as I add more and more to the scene. More rubble, more debris, more tools and equipment ... and more paint. For any artist who has a tendency to 'fiddle' with an almost finished painting, this modelling is heaven sent. And if you're a watercolourist who dreads those times when the paint turns muddy, this is now pure joy.  I can splash a bit here, dab some there, daub something mucky and generally just have fun. 

Likewise with the texturing materials. A few dabs of PVA glue and a sprinkle of bricks, rocks and dirt here and there, all seem to add to the natural state of ruin that is the core of a war torn landscape.

Creating a realistic scene is however a very difficult thing to do, and my appreciation of the skills involved creating some of the models I've seen, has got up a hundred fold. Anyone looking at a photograph of my model would not be fooled into thinking it is anything other than a model. Not so in the world of a truly skilled technician. I have seen photographs of diorama's where you are completely unaware that you are looking at a scale representation. 

For reference I have been looking at photographs found online noting the dark charred areas around craters made by mortar shells and bombs, and the badly scratched and damaged Oil Drums, and supply crates. Nothing is pristine in an environment like this, and I suspect I am not being 'rough enough' or 'dirty enough' with my props.

All that is left to do now is paint the very tiny soldiers and glue them in place. I am hoping they will be the final touch that brings the scene alive.

More posts about this diorama

D-Day Diorama
Part 1

D-Day Diorama
Part 2

D-Day Diorama
Part 4

World War II Diorama - Part 2

My disappointment in the realism of the two tanks in this diorama led me to do some more research. What I discovered was a wide range of specialist ageing and weathering products, specifically designed for this purpose. However, I have also seen some remarkable results created just with paint. So for this first model I decided not to use any weathering products and rely entirely on what I could achieve using acrylic paint. 

To begin with, having constructed the partially demolished cottage on the base, I have simply painted the scene to give the impression of grass, mud, stone, brick, etc.

I quickly saw that paint alone wasn't going  to be good enough so made myself some materials. Scale model rocks and stone can be bought but I decided to make my own. I collected a selection of stones and pebbles from my garden and crushed them. They made perfect 'rubble' for spreading around the demolished cottage. I simply daubed PVA glue where I wanted rubble, poured on the crushed stones, and then shook off the excess loose stuff.

After I'd put down a reasonable mix of rocks, stone, brick and rubble, I set to work painting some of the military equipment. Oil cans, Ammunition boxes, a bicycle, and my first infantryman - the radio operator.

For the first time I'm starting to believe that making a realistic scene is a possibility but my efforts are grossly inferior to models I've seen on the 'net. That doesn't detract from the fact that I'm enjoying this immensely.

More posts about this diorama

D-Day Diorama
Part 1

D-Day Diorama
Part 3

D-Day Diorama
Part 4

World War II Diorama - Part 1

Recently I have seen some Diorama models made by a very skilled member of my forum, and found the realism he is able to create quite breath taking. In awe of his work I felt inspired to "have-a-go" for myself.

Around the same time, following last years 80th anniversary of D-Day, memories of my late father's war time service have been stirred, in particular his landing on the Normandy beaches during Operation Overlord. My thoughts aligned and the idea of building a D-Day diorama were born.

I discovered a scale model kit called "Operation Overlord" that depicts the D-Day beach landings, and that was perfect for what I wanted. After I'd bought it; studied what you get in the box; pondered where on earth to start; and reflected on how good (or bad) a job I might do, I decided I'd like to start with something smaller and less important - I wanted to make the "Operation Overlord" diorama as good as I could get it and didn't want to spoil it by using it as a practice piece.

Another smaller kit called "D-Day Battlefront" provided the perfect solution, not only because of it's smaller size and simpler construction but also because it wasn't as meaningful to me and it wouldn't matter so much if I messed it up.

I haven't made a plastic construction kit since I was about 13 years old and back then it was a case of slapping glue on everything and leaving it unpainted. This time I am attempting to create something more realistic. The kit comprises of a flimsy plastic base with all the components necessary to create a realistic landscape, a couple of tanks, sundry military equipment and a few dozen soldiers.

I decided to begin with the Allied Forces Sherman tank. Once constructed I painted it in the standard olive and added the decals. Next I made a deliberately messy job of adding brown and grey paints to create the illusion of rust and mud. I soon learnt that creating realism is much harder than I had expected. 

My version of the German Tiger tank looks as if it's just come out of the showroom - I certainly need to do a lot better than this.

Continue reading about this diorama

D-Day Diorama
Part 2

D-Day Diorama
Part 3

D-Day Diorama
Part 4

Rose Hip

 

In my Art Forum we run a few projects and challenges every month, as a bit of fun. Most members of this very small  online community join in and it is nice sharing our work and seeing how others have tackled the same subject. It's not a competition to see who's painting is the best, but a sharing of approaches and techniques that widen our own appreciation of our chosen medium. 

Another big benefit, which I for one appreciate greatly, is that it puts before us subjects that we wouldn't otherwise consider tackling. Take this Rose Hip for example. Left to my own devices, a subject such as this wouldn't cross my mind - it's just not my cup of tea. Also, some subjects are well outside our comfort zones as I suspect most artists stick with what they know they can do. 

Tackling new subject matter and being dragged outside our comfort zones may not sound like 'fun', but it is, and I'm convinced my art has improved as a result.

Some previous forum projects

Cannon

Kitten on a fence

Turtle

Combining Marquetry and Pyrography

It has occurred to me many times that it ought to be possible to combine my two new interests of Marquetry and Pyrography, so I decided to have a go. I grabbed the next draw from my small unit and drew out a design. I chose a piece of very plain veneer for the middle section, and a grained but similarly coloured veneer for panels either side. My plan was to burn an old Oak tree onto the plain middle section and cut some shapes to create acorns in the side panels. I chose a grey veneer to use for an edging. 

The initial burning of the tree went well and I glued all the pieces to the drawer but as I sanded the wood for a smooth finish I found the tree getting fainter and fainter. I'd half expected something like this to happen but, as a novice, I needed to see the effect unfold before I could decide what to do about it. The answer was to go over the tree again with the burner and darken it throughout. Though it was much harder burning on the raised draw front rather than a flat surface, I achieved an acceptable result.

The French Polishing process has yellowed and darkened the wood much more than I would have liked, which is disappointing, but overall I found the process quite successful and I'm now happy that I can add 'pictures' to my marquetry designs.

Previous posts on Marquetry

Pyrography
Wood burning a Lion

My First Box
just to work out how.

Practice
for Major Project

Daffodil in wood

I've decided to decorate the next drawer of my small storage unit with another flower bloom, and this time I've chosen a Daffodil. I began by finding a suitable photo and converting it to Grayscale as this helps me with the tonal values when I'm choosing the veneers. I then drew out on a piece of tracing paper a very simplistic view of the flower head, reducing it to as few 'pieces' as I could manage. I was quite pleased that I reduce it down to just 9 shapes.

The next job was to choose the veneers. For each 'element' of the flower I looked for a piece of wood that was the right tone, with grain running the right way, that would sit well next to other pieces.

For those interested, the method I use is the "Double Bevel" method. I tried the "Window" method early on in my marquetry journey but couldn't get very accurate shapes. I'm not saying it's a bad method, just that I get on better using Double Bevel.

Once I had all the elements cut out the next stage was Sand Shading. As you will see from the photo, I have a pan of fine sand on a very hot hot plate. I dip each piece of the flower into the sand where I think it needs some shading. The hot sand 'burns' the thin wood, which gives the effect of shading. This is a process that I'm not very good at, so I'm doing it whenever I can, to get the practice. As I mentioned in my previous post, there are many variables involved and I haven't yet got the experience to be sure of getting the right result.

So with the shading done I am disappointed to see a couple of places where the wood has singed, but on a positive note, there are some places where I'm really pleased with the shadow created. All of the pieces I'm making for this storage unit are for practice only, and this is the reason why. If you compare the flower before and after shading, you can see that the shading does add another dimension to the design, so it's worth persevering to get this technique right. 

From here to the finished article is just a case of applying Shellac Sanding Sealer (4/5 coats) and then French Polishing (6-10 coats or more), sanding with a high grit sandpaper between every coat.

Here are a couple of photo's of the finished piece. I'm very pleased with the marquetry side of things, though wood grain choices still need more thought, but I'm still struggling with the polishing process. The shine isn't as shiny as I wanted, nor as even. Much more practice and learning is needed in that regard.

Previous posts on Marquetry

My First Box
just to work out how.

Flower design
for drawer front

Practice
for Major Project