Antonio Stradvari (1 Viewer)

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As I am finishing my Wounded Cuirassier soon (hopefully), I'm already planning for the next few projects.

One of them is a medium size shadowbox based on the famous violin maker A Strad. There are a couple of paintings by Edgar Bundy which show him in his open air rooftop workshop. Both paintings give an idea of the workshop layout and its surrounding view of Cremona.

I had bought a lot of toy castings violins and lutes specifically for this project. This looks like a fun project.

https://useum.org/artwork/Stradivarius-in-his-Workshop-Edgar-Bundy-1913
https://www.art.com/products/p21691...adivarius-in-his-workshop-at-cremona-1913.htm

 

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Making some headway into the project.
I snipped off the hands to the violins and trimmed them. The four figures in the painting are being fleshed out.

 

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I knocked up the back of a chair for the girl.

 

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Starting to focus more on this piece. Following careful animation of the arms and hands, I am finalising all the poses.

 

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I've sculpted more on the figs. I used a converted Italeri table.

The top view shows the position of the figures. I will prob shorten the table length to reduce the depth of the scene.

 

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I increased the height of Mr Strad by almost a cm,

 

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Focusing mostly on this piece for now. I created a side round table and finished converting the main table.

I positioned the pieces and also took an overhead shot. This should give me the footprint for the diorama. As can be seen, even though the main scene is small, the surround would take up some space.

 

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I further detailed the figures.

Stool legs for the boy with violin were from Phoenix (S&D). Added a pocket with gloves to Stradivari's apron. Chair legs from plastic strips were added to the girl. The table was covered with a cloth, utensils and a violin.

 

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The boy with violin was reposed to fit with the table.

The other boy, girl and table were sprayed with grey primer and given a simple coat of paint.

 

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I sprayed these two figures for final cleanup before ptg

 

[Obee]

I sprayed these two figures for final cleanup before ptg

Looking good

John

 

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Hi John,

tx for yr comment. I gather that you are enjoying this build, too.

I've completed the other two figs and given all the pieces a basic undercoat.

I'm going to start the scene layout soon to finalise the placements including the background. This will determine the final footprint and then I can arrange for the box sides to be cut. Separately, I've worked out the lighting arrangements.

Rgds Victor

 

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The footprint is being finalised. Using a stout piece of cardboard as a base, I positioned the tables and pinned the figures in place. The low walls have also been cut out. I have allowed for a little depth for the bkgd.

The size of the frame has been determined. I can now proceed to cut the box pieces to the right depth.

 

[Louis Badolato]

Another winner, Vctor!:salute::

 

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Hi Louis,

Thanks. At this stage, I am not that certain. It's still looking murky to me.

Anyway, I ploughed on, knocking up the walls and columns, some beams. The surroundings seem quite substantial but I am planning for a small viewing window.

Rgds Victor

 

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I added more beams and planking. So far, allowing for the background, the scene can fit into my proposed box.

I created a viewing window to text the layout.

 

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Created a roof and started to lay in the colours.

I also modelled three violins which are to be hung out on the ledge.

 

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I think that this gets interesting from this point onwards.

I added more cardboard pieces and a roof to seal off the overhead LED lighting for the background. Some planking was added and a bkgd was curved to fit behind the scene. This was then painted. The figures were also painted in oils.

I also created a viewing window frame to visualise the internal scene.

 

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This shows the testfitting being done to this scene. Using the viewing frame, the scene was painted in the bkgd.

This is how it looks thru the viewing frame, with and without the roof.

And finally, the violins drying in the sun have been attached to the ledge.

 

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I've just had the box made. So the scene had to be re-adjusted to fit inside the box, I usually complete the box first but in this case, I had to wait for the supply of wood to come in.

I've added the figures temporarily and taken a pix thru the viewing frame. The scene will be tilted slightly forward and I'll raise the bkgd as well.