Other Things

This will be an area to show you what other non 1/6th  projects I'm working on ; daft things ; and other stuff .

         I should explain that I make  objects for Museums all over the place , some sculpted , some illustrations , and so on.

30th September 2009 :

 I have just finished an 18C mirror plateau for a museum in Washington DC.

Wot's a Mirror Plateau ?

 When giving the very grandest dinners between about 1670 and the French Revolution , it was fashionable to mount a display on the dining table , usually using a raised , decorated plateau covered in mirror glass.  On top of this could be displayed sugar or porcelain figures representing classical subjects , buildings & gardens etc. This one is almost impossible to photograph because it's seven feet long, and the detail of the edging ( my part ) gets lost in the distance.

Here's  a closeup of one of the corners. This was sculpted , sent away to be cast in resin , then returned here for painting and gilding , before being dispatched to the US:

The whole thing will be displayed in the correct context of a dining table  fully laid , with the distant edge up against a mirror to double the apparent scale:

 

And the top ( covered in mirrors ) will have a display of early biscuit  Sevres porcelain figures mounted on it. The effect in candlelight is sumptuous...

I often make Fake Food for various Historic Houses : this is a recent Pheasant Pie done for a National Trust house:

And in front is a plate of a roast pigeon and some beans and carrots.

April 2010 : At present , I'm painting this immense Painted Cloth , 20 foot wide , for an historic house reconstruction project in Wales.

These cloths were widely used for decoration from 1400-1700, but very few survive. This has been designed in the style of the 1460s to reflect the exploits of the house owner , and will have a series of scenes in the centre representing his military achievements as a supporter of the Yorkist dynasty. So far I just have the border done , but work starts on the scenes after Easter.

The paint is all mixed with animal glue size or milk protein , a technique which lasted until recently for painting stage scenery.

All the armorial stuff relates to the owner and his patrons, and there's more to go on in the way of heraldic badges.

I'm working on this in the Old School about 400 yards away : it's far too big to fit in my premises. The building is used as an after-school club in the afternoons , so I have young visitors sometimes whilst I work , which is rather fun. We now have an idea to use the frame, when I'm finished ,  for another cloth , which the kids can add their own contributions to.

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