The Road to Paris...1944 (1 Viewer)

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

I love looking at vintage photographs when researching my various modeling projects. The last time I was in Paris I picked up a couple of books that had a virtual treasure trove of images from the early twentieth century.
I have always been interested in vintage advertising art and many of the buildings had large advertisements painted directly on the ends of the buildings.

 

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

There are always details that can be copied in the models to set the time and place. Many of the buildings in these period images still stand today even though some are well over two hundred years old.
After spending my youth pouring over the grainy black and white pictures published in most English language WWII books, it was like seeing a whole new world the first time I visited France and many of the areas where fighting raged in two World Wars.

 

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

Old stone walls and gates enclose the yards and are often the entrance to small businesses and hotels.

 

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

Seeing many of the same areas that were pictured in various WWII publications first hand made the violent past seem like it took place just yesterday.

 

[fishead19690]

Who are you trying to fool Ken? Those are all pictures of some of your latest work! Nice stuff! The curtains and gate were the give aways other then that you might have had me.

 

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

Standing in the streets of some of these ancient villages it was easy to imagine Allied Sherman tanks rumbling down the streets paved with centuries old cobblestones. For some unfortunate villages it was just another army following the same path as the soldiers of times past.

 

[fishead19690]

Seeing many of the same areas that were pictured in various WWII publications first hand made the violent past seem like it took place just yesterday.

You posted the color picture while I was replying to the black and white photos,if you had left out the picture of the gate I,ll bet you would have fooled most of us into thinking these were real pictures.
I also love checking out photos of old buildings for building projects. I really like the European style of building.

 

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

Well, I thought it might be nice to give a little back ground before I launched in with the colour images.
This one is called the Road to Paris...1944. It is one of our shelf dioramas (11" X 28") and features buildings, walls and streets as they probably appeared to some of the GIs in 1944. I really like to add details that are always there but overlooked... like the evidence in the street that there have recently been horses down this same way. Maybe the Germans retreating...

Ken

 

[Alexdakar]

Absolutely beautiful work! The first picture fooled me a bit I thought I was looking at an old vintage photo.

 

[Lewey Gun Vick]

Ken, words cannot describe your amazing skills at dioramas and sculpting!!!!

Vick

 

[Louis Badolato]

Unbelievably cool!!! Your work is, as usual, is spectacular. Right down to horse manure on the cobblestones . . . just amazing!

 

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

Thanks All! Here are a couple of more colour images of 'The Road to Paris...1944'. Ericka and I are packing this one up to show at the West Coaster next week. I enjoyed working on this one so much that I think the next couple will be village scenes too.
This first one shows the second story window of the Hotel, the gutters and drainpipes (H&A products) and the rough texture of the old stucco.

This image has a couple K&C GIs taking a break behind the M4A3... looks like they found some local product to taste. This also gives you a pretty good idea of the overall scale of the elements.

 

[Lewey Gun Vick]

Ken, your diorama really puts me in the mood to watch Band of Brothers, especially with the paratroopers in the dio!!!

Vick

 

[Louis Badolato]

Those gutters are too real!

 

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

Funny...I couldn't help but to think about my Dad when I was putting the gutters in. He is 90 years old, and still every year he worries about the leaves in the gutters. I have found myself stopping by to visit in dress clothes and a tie and he got me to go up on the roof and blow the leaves out for him!
When I was finishing up the small details I thought...why not leaves in the gutters?

 

[Lewey Gun Vick]

Ken, the leaves in the gutters is a work of GENIUS!!!! Such a cool detail!!!!

Vick

 

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

Here is a bird's eye view of the street surface, side walk, lamp post and the debris on the street.

 

[Ken & Ericka Osen/H&A Studio]

Here is an overall image of the shelf diorama with my standard hand painted back drop behind it. I really need to paint one up with some basic buildings silhouetted to use a a backdrop for these village dioramas.
I used just about every material in my shop on this one, MDF, plastic, metal, wood, resin, paper, molded foam, fabric and various preserved natural materials. The building was a one of a kind built for this street scene, but I like it so much I think I will build a full structure similar to this next.
As a side note, I never use photo shop in any of the images I post and this allows the viewers to judge the details without 'smoke & mirrors'

 

[kogu]

Beautiful work, Ken!
That is one phantastic display you created.
Konrad

 

[Louis Badolato]

Ken,

On a scale of one to ten its about a 473!! I can't believe you actually put leaves in the gutters!!! Fantastic!!!