Comments | joyful_molly: Art / Resource: Maritime Dioramas

joyful_molly

Art / Resource: Maritime Dioramas

May 28, 2010 21:57

Thanks a lot to all of you who gave me ideas for my diorama. I love the idea of a harbour scene or a gentleman's club - though the "Molly House" one is tempting and would definitely find Sebastian's approval, I doubt that Old Cudd(l)y would feel very comfortable there - and I'll now make some drafts for your various suggestions. I have to try and ( Read more... )

royal navy, resource, 19th century, ships, art, tall ships, age of sail, 18th century

Comments 8

canadian_jay May 28 2010, 20:13:23 UTC

Oooh! Very nice, very pretty, and very interesting. *geeks out a bit*

joyful_molly May 30 2010, 23:08:21 UTC

I've once seen a diorama on the Antiques Roadshow. It was also a model from around 1800, made by a French POW, and the rigging was made of hair. He had probably sacrificed his pigtail. I couldn't decide whether to be fascinated or creeped out, but I have to say it was amazing in all details.

canadian_jay May 30 2010, 23:12:01 UTC

Oh wow! Those French PoWs are certainly enterprising! That's just amazing.

rum_inspector May 29 2010, 08:44:51 UTC

Love those dioramas! The first one especially, it even has hay and sand in there!

I didn't even know, but I have a diorama :D I've been calling it ship in a box, the case is similar to the last picture, the ship looks most like late 19th century brig.

joyful_molly May 30 2010, 23:10:48 UTC

The details are so fantastic, especially considering how small that diorama is! I've only seen very few myself, and I wished I could have a closer look at the first one. Artwork aside, it's such a wonderful insight into the life aboard a ship of the line.

I didn't even know, but I have a diorama :D I've been calling it ship in a box, the case is similar to the last picture, the ship looks most like late 19th century brig.

Oh, that's great! Any chance for pictures? Ship in the box sounds perfectly fine for me, it's what it is, after all. Where did you find it?

rum_inspector June 1 2010, 19:08:18 UTC

I'll take and post pictures later on :) Found it in a flea market, or what you call them. I don't like shopping but there the stuff is always so random, it feels more like treasure hunting. Sometimes you may find gems you actually can afford :)

chloe_amethyst May 29 2010, 14:45:18 UTC

I simply love dioramas and hand crafted models of all kinds, probably because I love miniatures. When I was a kid I used to wish I could live in a diorama. ;-) That's very interesting that POWs made them. I can't wait to see what you create!

I was in a little German shop a week ago, owned by a German man and his wife to sell German imported handicrafts. They had quite a few little dioramas for sale, built into what I'd call shadowboxes of various sizes, meant to hang on the wall. Some were xmas themed and some had a particular profession as theme. Made me wonder if this is a popular German handicraft.

joyful_molly May 30 2010, 23:18:27 UTC

I'm fascinated by miniatures as well. The smaller, the better! I can spend hours looking at dollhouse-items. Not the thing to collect if you have cats, though! :)

POWs created many kinds of artworks. Carvings, ditty boxes, miniatures, memorabilia etc. For one, they could pass the time, for another, they could sell the pieces and make some money.

As for the German shop: that's a good question, actually! I know that, some years ago, there was this fashion of having dioramas for various professions - coiffure salon, workshop etc. - but I don't think it's popular in Germany as a whole. There are some areas where it certainly is - in the north (because of the sea, which automatically leads to creation of maritime miniatures), and then there's the eastern part of Germany, of course. The best carvers of the world live in the Erzgebirge.