“To make an acceptable scenic or bulletin artist, you must be able to draw, as well as paint, almost every conceivable object in Nature, as well as articles of manufacture, embracing a great many mechanical objects which must be represented with truthful fidelity as to detail and form.”Excerpt from Frank Atkinson’s “Scene Painting and Bulletin Art” (1916, page 69)
Same song, second verse…I am always astounded at the various skill levels at Sosman & Landis. Yesterday, I posted a detail from the Winona, Minnesota, Scottish Rite with the scales of justice. The proportions of the figure and the drapery are not well done at all.
Here is another example of the same composition from the Wichita Scottish Rite in Kansas. A far superior artistic created this version of the small drop for the Vision Scene (17th Degree in the Scottish Rite).
Author: waszut_barrett@me.com
Wendy Rae Waszut-Barrett, PhD, is an author, artist, and historian, specializing in painted settings for opera houses, vaudeville theaters, social halls, cinemas, and other entertainment venues. For over thirty years, her passion has remained the preservation of theatrical heritage, restoration of historic backdrops, and the training of scenic artists in lost painting techniques. In addition to evaluating, restoring, and replicating historic scenes, Waszut-Barrett also writes about forgotten scenic art techniques and theatre manufacturers. Recent publications include the The Santa Fe Scottish Rite Temple: Freemasonry, Architecture and Theatre (Museum of New Mexico Press, 2018), as well as articles for Theatre Historical Society of America’s Marquee, InitiativeTheatre Museum Berlin’s Die Vierte Wand, and various Masonic publications such as Scottish Rite Journal, Heredom and Plumbline. Dr. Waszut-Barrett is the founder and president of Historic Stage Services, LLC, a company specializing in historic stages and how to make them work for today’s needs. Although her primary focus remains on the past, she continues to work as a contemporary scene designer for theatre and opera.
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