Month: May 2017

My article in DIE VIERTE WAND #007 is now available to read online!

This is a publication produced by the Initiative TheaterMuseum Berlin. I am very proud to be part of this international theatre community and very appreciative of the friendships that I made last summer while traveling in Europe. My article is titled “Staging the Scottish Rite: Degree Productions of Freemasonry.” I have included a few images from the publication as an incentive to visit their site. Articles are in German or
English and all are available online.

Here is the link for issue #007 with my article:
https://issuu.com/itheam/docs/itheam_d4w-007

Setting the Stage for Fiction

The recent Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center article notes, “To accommodate the size of the [Fort Scott] collection—numbering more than 70 drops—the Auditorium’s stage depth was extended by 10 feet and proprietary rigging developed to hang and store the scenes.” It also explains that the Fort Scott scenery collection was acquired during the planning of the Ives theatre, posting “As plans shaped for the Auditorium’s design, the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center acquired a large collection of hand-painted Scottish Rite theatre drops that were made available from the sale of the Valley of Fort Scott Scottish Rite building in Kansas.” Both of these statements are incorrect. The plans for the theater and stage were finalized long before Fort Scott was even in the picture. The story needs to be told about how the stage almost ended up in the corner of a room without any space to stage Scottish Rite degrees.

The original 2014 design for the Ives auditorium placed the stage in the corner of a square room; it was not designed like a standard performance venue. This was an understandable oversight as the architectural firm specialized in elder care facilities and not theater spaces. The architects were initially brought on to evaluate and possibly repurpose an existing structure at the Minnesota Masonic Home for a heritage center. As plans changed and the need for new construction became evident, the original architectural firm was retainedeven though they had no previous experience with this type of venue.

I was contacted during July 2014 by Mark Campbell to possibly join the planning team as a theatre consultant for the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center project. I explained that the project needed theatre consultants that specialized in the new construction of performance spaces, recommending Michael DiBlasi of Schuler Shook. DiBlasi and I had attended two League of Historic American Theatres conferences earlier that year in Chicago and New York City. Schuler Shook and my company, Bella Scena, LLC, were Allied Service Providers for LHAT and we were both currently involved in two historical theater restoration projects: the SOKOL Hall in St. Paul and the Masonic Theatre in Winona, Minnesota. I scheduled a meeting with Campbell to introduce him to DiBlasi at the Minneapolis Scottish Rite. It was during this meeting that Campbell showed us the designs for the proposed auditorium and I voiced concern about the architects placing the stage in the corner of a room.

Schuler Shook was hired for the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center planning and reconfigured the architect’s existing theater design. Soon after, I was also hired on August 1, 2014 as the project’s historical consultant. During this time, I attended all planning meetings with the architects, theatre consultants, interior designers, museum team, and others to provide source material and resources for a variety of projects. By October 2014, I realized that the small Ives stage would never accommodate degree work in the manner that either Minneapolis or St. Paul Scottish Rite Masons were accustomed to. I expressed concern about the limited number of lines that was currently proposed as it only included space for twelve drops.

It was at this point that I recommended replicating a rigging system that would mimic the line spacing in other Scottish Rite theaters across the country – one that did not use mechanized lines but remained a simple counterweight system. During the fall of 2014, I sought the counsel of both Rick Boychuk and Paul Sannerud to make sure that a safe system could be designed and I was not speaking out of turn. Obviously, it needed to be a system that would adhere to all current safety regulations.

Dan Culhane of SECOA was the designer for what the article refers to as “proprietary rigging.” His design was proposed by Schuler Shook for the Ives stage and accepted by the CEO. But the stage still wasn’t big enough to perform all of the Scottish Rite’s twenty-nine degrees. But how much bigger did the stage need to be as there was no collection to base the final size on?

The CEO directed me to come up with the necessary number of lines needed for a standard Scottish Rite scenery collection. I proposed that hanging seventy drops could stage all twenty-nine degrees and submitted the ideal compositions. The stage was extended ten feet. I then organized an anticipated, but unidentified, historical scenery collection so that the specifications could be provided to our theatre consultants and the rigging design finalized. This plan also took into consideration four empty lines that could accommodate scenery for rental groups – something that I was extremely hesitant to include for fear of damaging scenes on neighboring lines. Remember, there was still no inkling of what historical scenery collection would hang above the Ives stage. Fort Scott was not even on the radar.

My number of seventy lines was derived from looking at the combined collections of Minneapolis and St. Paul as the CEO explained that they would soon fold. But could we time their closing with the installation of the necessary scenery for the opening? After all, St. Paul was a perfect candidate as the collection was already restored, having completed the work myself in 2002. Steve Johnson was going to work on urging the Valley to relocate. I also took into account the possible inclusion of Scottish Rite scenes from Duluth and Winona. My focus was preserving Minnesota Masonic heritage as that was my initial directive and not a nationwide search for another acquisition.

It is important to recall that the CEO had explained that two Scottish Rite Valleys in Minneapolis and St. Paul would merge and meet in the new Heritage Center. However, he also suggested that the Scottish Rite in Duluth might fold due to poor management and the financial difficulties with the Speech Clinic. Therefore, I was creating a compilation of three collections that would be used for future degree work. I was also taking Winona into consideration, even though the City still owned the Masonic drops, as I had just put the collection into storage that summer. In 2014, I sincerely believed that many of the Masonic drops would never see the light of day on the Winona stage. In hindsight, I was correct, as the City of Winona recently announced their plan to auction off all but ten drops from their collection.

During the fall of 2014, the architects and theatre consultants also missed another crucial aspect of staging Scottish Rite degree work – the necessary floor space in front of the proscenium. During one meeting, I brought up this aspect and immediately an additional funding was approved for two rows of removable auditorium seats and a collapsible stage apron.

I have to wonder why no one remembers any of this institutional history, or do they?

To be continued…

Masquerade, Paper Faces on Parade

The Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center “Behind the Scenes” article notes that the restoration crew spent hours organizing the Fort Scott scenery prior to restoring and installing the scenes. Eighteen months earlier, I had already completed the organization of the Fort Scott collection, determining the necessary alterations and creating a book that outlined my plans for the impending restoration and installation. The online article now credits all of this work to Kimber Lawler and Mia Schillace-Nelson in the article section, “Trimming.”

The article’s author writes,
“The team first lays out each scene in its original configuration – one on top of the other – to find the best line for trimming the drops to fit the Ives stage and rigging system. Trimming work is slow and meticulous so that the scene remains in proportion and hangs properly.”

First, I will clarify what “trimming” means to those unversed in technical theatre jargon. A set is “trimmed” when it has been placed in the desired position within the performance area. The online article misleads the reader, crediting Lawler and Schillace-Nelson with the difficult task of determining the Fort Scott scenery order for the Ives Theater.

I determined the placement of each Fort Scott drop for the Ives stage during December 2015. This information was published in a book that I distributed to the Minnesota Masonic Charities staff, the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center staff, and the theatre consulting firm in January 2016. I then shared my personal copy with the Grand Lodge Secretary so that he could peruse our great find after realizing that he was unfamiliar with my work.

I also created other documents pertaining to the collection for future use in constructing the restoration timeline, ordering necessary materials, and planning alterations for each drop. These secondary documents included information requested by our theatre consulting firm, such as specific drop order and my estimated weight load for each line to order the necessary counterweights. The continued use of information from my documents was even noted by the MMHC general director during communications with Singers in Accord Concert representatives when he stated, “Don’t worry, we’re still using Wendy’s drop order!”

To understand the overall absurdity of what is presented in the online article, one must understand the process necessary to alter and install a Scottish Rite collection created for a different Masonic venue. The process is much more than laying out one drop on top of another to plan the placement of used scenery in a new venue as the online article suggests.

Each drop in a scene needs to be individually lit as it was for the original venue, or great shadows will be cast on the upstage drops (those farthest away from the audience). The theatre consultant and I closely worked out the initial placement of drops and lights within the new rigging system designed by Dan Culhane, current president of USITT, during December 2014 – well before we acquired an historical scenery collection. Our final 2015 plans took into account the complete lighting of each drop in every painted scene. Ideally, portable strip lights would light the lower portion of each scene too.

There was a second consideration for the organization of the Fort Scott collection as it was primarily purchased for Masonic degree work. Degree work takes place on both the stage and the auditorium floor. Each degree requires a certain amount of stage depth and not all productions are consistent. You have to understand what each degree requires to anticipate the necessary floor work and stage work. Remember, as the CEO repeatedly explained to his team that both of the Scottish Rite Valleys would leave their current homes, combine to form one Valley, and rent space in the Ives auditorium for their degrees. This is also why the apron of the stage can be lowered to floor level and the first two rows of auditorium seating removed – to accommodate degree work.

I was familiar with the degree work for both the Minneapolis and St. Paul Valleys and determined what scenes to use and where to place each scene in the Ives theatre. Although the scenery was coming from another Southern Jurisdiction Scottish Rite Valley, there are numerous regional discrepancies that need to be taken into account in the selection and placement of individual compositions. For me, this was the most difficult task in re-configuring the drop collection for a new space. Additionally, the project drew on years of independent research pertaining to the theatrical interpretation of Scottish Rite degrees and the recent ritual revisions.

The December 2014 organization of an anticipated historical scenery collection with a new version of a Scottish Rite rigging system. Almost all Scottish Rite theaters have rigging systems with lines on 2″-4″ centers. Dan Culhane designed a new system to replicate and old system of dedicated lines in a traditional counterweight system.

If the current restoration crew did all of this same work again, Minnesota Freemasons paid for the same work twice.

There is another aspect to consider, one that looks at the bigger picture and identifies those who take credit for another’s work or erase the contributions of others. Unfortunately, Minnesota Masonic Charities and the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center have recently fallen into the pattern of misleading the public, specifically misrepresenting the contributions of those who were involved with the planning and construction of this center.

I believe that this pattern of behavior will cause the general public to not trust the intentions or statements of the Fraternity. It could also have an affect on all other Masonic activities, especially charitable contributions in the future. If an organization perpetuates falsehoods about something as simple as scholarly contributions, are they truthful about their financial disclosures?

If this solely concerned my work, I might consider it a personal vendetta against me. However, the contributions of other nationally recognized experts have now been erased from the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center’s institutional history. One example is the written contributions for the Ladd Museum produced by Arturo de Hoyos, Grand Archivist and Historian of the Supreme Council in Washington D.C. Many of his original writings are now attributed to a Minnesota Masonic Charities staff member who is listed as the sole museum exhibit writer (see past installment 52).

Why is De Hoyos not credited for his contributions? Why am I not credited for my contributions? Why take such pains to hide the truth regarding who did the work? This practice appears to be the antithesis of Masonic principles, yet it continues without any reprimand or oversight.

To be continued…

Here is the link to the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center “Behind the Scenes” article in its entirety: http://www.masonicheritagecenter.org/…/05/behind-the-scenes/

I am down for the count.  There will be more tomorrow about my scenic art and scholarly pursuits!

Drops are not Props

On May 5, 2017, an online article was posted on the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center website looking in depth at their Fort Scott scenery acquisition and their “restoration” team. Here is the article in it’s entirety: http://www.masonicheritagecenter.org/…/05/behind-the-scenes/

This article appears as a counterpoint to some of the information that I have presented in regard to the Fort Scott scenery collection and its condition since February. Because of my involvement, there is just too much incorrect information posted about the collection for me to ignore it.
One would hope that the writer of the article would check the facts prior to publication. This would be quite easy as there are still multiple copies of the original Fort Scott books that I created during December 2015 for the staff to understand the scope and significance of the collection. They were also created in preparation to discuss the order of priority for restoration, the process, and the necessary alteration for a new venue. There is much about what is stipulated in the article that suggests the books I wrote and provided to the MMC CEO, MMHC general director and MMC Director of Communications remain unread.

I had to chuckle as I read the May 5 article, wondering if this was the same MMC staff member who once erroneously identified a Masonic apron as a “canvas bag” on the Minnesota Masonic Historical Society and Museum brochure. As always, it is crucial to double-check your facts before you publish, especially if you are writing about theatre heritage in a town of theatre practitioners and scholars.

I will start with statements that are simply incorrect, providing a basic fact-checking service. At least this will be more entertaining than fact-checking political statements.
Beginning with the statement from the article about the use of Masonic scenery. The author writes, “Drops were intended to be used as props, not artifacts.” This is incorrect.

Drops are scenery and not props. The answer is easily located online when you type in “What is a prop in a play?”
The answer: “A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or on screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct from the actors, scenery, costumes, and electrical equipment.”
Backdrops, cut drops and leg drops are the painted scenery for Scottish Rite degree work.

They establish the environment. Ironically, this is detailed in my doctoral dissertation that I also made available to the MMC staff while working at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center. For example, the INRI Peristyle scene for the eighteenth degree would have a setting created with painted scenes – a backdrop, cut drop, and leg drop. If the Pelican piercing its breast were painted on a profile piece and placed within that scene, it would be a set prop. If an actor walked into this scene, carrying something in his hand (like a box that would unfold into a cross) that would be a hand prop. Drops are not props.

The writer also identifies the wooden sandwich battens as “old growth cedar.” This is incorrect too as all battens installed by Sosman & Landis were pine – lightweight and cheap. Theater professionals would never have selected cedar, an expensive lumber with incredible longevity. Remember that theatre scenery was intended as ephemeral and not like cedar shingles or a cedar chest. Lumber companies specialized in “theatrical lumber” that was shipped in bundles by the linear foot. These pine boards were even shipped to Masonic lumber barons who were in charge of Scottish Rite Valleys, as was the case in Winona, Minnesota. Theatre suppliers were particular about their battens and very consistent in their selection of pine. The lumber was specially shaped so that it would not catch on neighboring drops.

The writer notes that the wooden sandwich battens could not be used because they were “crooked.” I think that the writer meant they were slightly warped – a common occurrence in collections over time that is easily remedied. The batten order is swapped to straighten out the warp – done. Plus the solution is free other than labor. No need for special materials, new innovation, or pipe pockets that will fail.

The article also mentions that many of the boards were “broken.” This was not the case when the battens were removed and placed into the Bloomington storage facility. For this statement, I have included pictures from onsite, in transport, and at the storage facility, depicting the remarkable condition of the aged wood. I will address the condition of the pine battens in detail and speaking from extensive experience. I have removed battens to restore drops and re-attached those same battens after a completed restoration numerous times. All told, I have handled approximately 900 individual top and bottom sandwich battens for more than two decades.

The battens from Fort Scott were in excellent condition, better than almost all others that I have encountered. They also contained Thomas Moses’ notes and drawings for the installation order, counterweight rigging system, and other entertaining cartoons. I have included a few for your examination as this was the only aspect about the wooden battens that was extraordinary. I have seen a few notes on scenes, but never this substantial amount with crucial information pertaining to the installation of a scenery collection.

Even if a split, or crack occurred, the boards were going to have to be shortened to fit the space which brings us to the next point: the apparent surprise at the mismatch in drop size relative the Ives Auditorium. This was always the case. The theater design was finalized and the construction of the space already underway before any scenery collection was identified and purchased. It is preposterous to think that we would locate any Scottish Rite Valley scenery collection sharing the same specifications to perfectly fit the Ives theater without alteration. As with the practice of purchasing and installing any used scenery into any new venue, it would have to be altered.

The proscenium in Fort Scott was slightly wider than that at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center. All of the backdrops and most of the cut drops would be a perfect fit. The foremost leg drops are often wider as they were intended to mask the side stages. It is difficult to increase historical scenery as one needs to not only attach new fabric, but also to paint the extensions with dry pigment. That is why we went bigger and planned on reduction.

The process is really quite simple, especially with leg drops. Two panels are removed from the center if it is a foliage, or sky scene. In some cases it even works beautifully with architecture too. In compositions where the center cannot be cut due to painted perspective, panels are removed from either an onstage side or offstage side. This is not rocket science if you know what you are doing. Having done this numerous times, I had it all planned out when the drops were purchased and shipped to Minnesota. This procedure was discussed in detail with the CEO during the spring of 2016.

The problem is that the CEO decided to swap horses midstream and go with a crew who had never completed any historical scenery restoration project before this one. They would be working with the scenery “blind” – unless they read my book, and even then it would be difficult.

To be continued…

On the Road Again

I spiraled into a deep depression after seeing the damaged scenery at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center during the Singers in Accord concert. I can always channel anger into some creative project, but devastation and despair shut down my spirit and productivity. Regardless of all desire to simply curl up into a fetal position and stay in bed each day, I focused on the upcoming deadline for the Santa Fe Scottish Rite book and I threw myself into this project. I was working as the Volume Editor and a contributor for both the Scottish Rite Theater essay and the Santa Fe Scottish Rite timeline. Some days it was a balm for my spirit. Here was a Scottish Rite Valley that would survive and its members understood the significance of their scenery collection. It was the beginning of March and I desperately anticipated my departure for USITT (United States Institute of Theatre Technology). This year, the theatre conference was taking place in St Louis, Missouri.

In addition to attending the conference, I planned to evaluate two Scottish Rite collections on the trip, as well as stop by the Theatre Museum of Repertoire Americana in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, on my drive down to St. Louis. Surprisingly, I was most excited about the theatre museum as it had been on my “bucket list” for over a decade.

Although the museum was currently closed for the season, I scheduled a private tour with one of the local volunteers. Her name was Monie and we were both excited to meet each other after having had several phone conversations. We both shared an interest in Steam Shows and theatre history – a winning combination if ever there was one! I don’t know what I was expecting, but the little brick opera house next to the Steam Threshers Reunion grounds genuinely surprised me. It was adorable. Since 1972, I had attended the Western Minnesota Steam Threshers Reunion in Rollag, Minnesota – it was one of my family’s annual traditions. For me, a Steam Show AND a Theatre Museum were an ideal combination that made me contemplate defecting to this city every Labor Day weekend instead of our annual trip up to Rollag, Minnesota. By the way, “steam thresher reunion” refers to threshing machines connected to a steam engine.

The Theatre Museum posted very little information about their contents other than advertising “a unique collection of memorabilia from early American popular entertainment. Stage drops, playbills, scrapbooks, costumes, scenery, artifacts, scripts and music scores dating from the 1850s.” Here is the current link: http://www.oldthreshers.org/index.cfm/?pageID=81 The new website should be up and running soon at www.thetheatremuseum.com

The Theatre Museum exhibits were packed full of artifacts and little displays, all backed by historic backdrops that had been used for tent shows from the 1850s to the 1950s. The museum was created in 1973 and hundreds of theatre folk had donated memorabilia since then. There was one thing in particular that made the entire trip worthwhile for me, a display on the painting table and scenic art materials of Jesse Cox (1878-1961). Cox was the generation of scenic artists immediately after Thomas Moses. Born in Seneca, Illinois, he moved to Estherville in 1891. By 1894, he went on the road with Noble Dramatic Shows of Chariton and that was when he became interested in a scenic art career.

Cox is credited with being the originator of the Diamond Dye process for stage scenery (mixing dye with warm water to make it much lighter in weight and transported more conveniently). The exhibit on Cox includes his paint bench, bowls, brushes and other products used in the diamond dye process, plus some of his designs. I was in heaven!

I could have spent hours carefully looking at and documenting each color, bowl and brush. This was a place where I would have to return someday, hopefully with colleagues and other scenic art students. It was an absolute treasure! This display was almost similar to what I had envisioned for a few of the personal artifacts of Thomas Moses at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center; it would accompany his scenery collection from Fort Scott. Remember, the theatre at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center was to be a working museum, an extension of the central museum and not just a rental space. Each area in the MMHC complex had been proposed as museum extensions, including the library and the lodge room. In these various areas, there would be a series of rotating artifacts that would encourage repeat visits by the general public and Masonic groups.

I had recommended that the Moses exhibit go between the entry doors of the Ives theatre. That display would include where the historic scenery collection originated and the scenic artist, Thomas Gibbs Moses. His Masonic cap, painter sweater, paint brush, charcoal sticks, and glue pot were just a few artifacts in the 4’ x 6’ display case. People who entered the theater would have the opportunity to understand the unique collection representing a shared cultural heritage between the Fraternity and the general public. The CEO had explained during the Spring of 2016 that there simply wasn’t enough money to create a Moses’ exhibit – maybe later. Instead, the CEO had selected a printed reproduction of an existing mural at the George Washington Masonic Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia.

Now with an unsightly and damaged scenery collection, the possibility of providing any artistic provenance connected with Moses for this internationally significant scenery collection in any display seemed impossible.

To be continued…

The Circle Game

The mass production of Scottish Rite scenery by Sosman & Landis dwindled after WWI and ceased by 1923. Volland Studios of St. Louis and Becker Bros. of Chicago assumed the lead as mass-producers of Masonic installations. After Sosman & Landis moved from the Clinton Street studios and established their business offices elsewhere, numerous letters were sent out to Scottish Rite Valleys explaining that the company was still operating and that Moses remained their art director. Moses’ work for Perry “Lester” Landis, however, was not full-time employment. The last decade of his life was spent working and living between California and Illinois, freelancing for numerous studios.

As before the rise of the scenic studio system, Moses returned to using available paint frames at different locations. In cases such as Fort Scott, paint frames were constructed on site and later incorporated into the top wooden battens. This was one of my greatest discoveries during November 2015 while onsite in Fort Scott. In addition to the dozens of handwritten notes and drawings on the inside of each wooden sandwich batten, there was the build up of colors used to prime the scenes. The study of these colors would have provided invaluable information to further our understanding of historical painting techniques, identifying aspects often invisible in completed compositions.

The primer used for backdrops was often tinted and seldom left white. This use of color saved a step in the artistic process, speeding up the entire project. Although I took some pictures in Fort Scott of the paint frame boards, I had planned on fully documenting this information during the subsequent restoration. Again, time had been limited in Fort Scott and I primarily gathered information to use in selecting scenes for the restoration order once I returned to Minnesota. If I had any inkling that someone else would be doing the restoration and this would be my last opportunity to handle the scenes, I would have spent the extra time fully documenting every detail onsite.

To be clear, the Fort Scott drops would have been rolled, identified, and packed in a different way if I had understood that someone completely unfamiliar with the contents of this collection and historic scenery would be restoring the scenes. I created a labeling system that was solely intended for my interpretation and no one else’s. The decisions that I made when rolling the scenes in Fort Scott were based on my anticipated restoration process and past experiences. If a crinkle was going to cause damage to the center of a clear blue sky, I altered other areas of the drop to prevent the wrinkle, such a splitting some seams. A split seam is easier to repair than touching up the center of a blue sky. In hindsight, the time and expense that was spent making these onsite decisions was simply a waste by all involved.

This week, I was chatting with a colleague who is the only other individual in the United States specializing in historical scenery; her focus is roll drops. We were discussing a future project and the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center debacle came up in our conversation. She said, “I am always amazed that people will jeopardize their professional reputations for money.” As soon as she said it, I realized that this was what had been bothering me all along.

The owner of Outhouse Exhibit Services had explained to me, on more than one occasion, where and when she was trained to handle historic artifacts, especially fragile ones. She must have known that hot melt glue irreparably damages painted fabric. Hot melt glue is never considered an option in ANY restoration process. Furthermore, I defy anyone to find the recommendation of hot melt glue as an appropriate binder for netting cut drops, whether historical or contemporary.

I understand that many companies do things “on the cheap,” especially when there is a looming deadline. Unfortunately, it often results in mistakes of grand proportions with an expensive price tag to reverse the damage. This is the case for the Fort Scott scenery collection, except that there is no way to fully reverse the damage.

The recent Fort Scott “restoration” makes me think of the “Demotivators” poster that defines “Mistakes.” The definition is “It could be that the purpose of your life is only to serve as a warning to others.” This is very applicable for many botched restoration projects as they now served as warning to others.

To be continued…

Here is the link to the “Demotivators” website if you need a laugh or to purchase some merchandise: https://despair.com/collections/demotivators

Hail! Hail! The Gang’s All Here

Thomas Moses was just one of many theatre artists who left memoirs that provide future generations with brief glimpses into the past. Almost two-hundred years surrounding the history of American scenic art can be explored in the writings of three artists: William Thompson Russell Smith (1812-1896), Thomas Gibbs Moses (1856-1934) and John Hanny (1890-1984). The value of their writings and artworks left us with more than than just information pertaining to their painting techniques, artistic materials and various theatre productions. I believe that their greatest contributions were the documentation of personal relationships and shared activities with other artists, whether for business or pleasure. These artists provide us with a view of the bigger picture when examining the evolution of scenic art and design.

It is Moses’ diaries from 1873-1933 that I find the most riveting, especially his descriptions during the period from 1889 to 1917. At this time, scenic artists shared their work, lives and dreams while striving toward a common goal – the painting of beautiful scenery. Unlike earlier generations, it was the various scenic studios throughout the country that inextricably linked these artists. The studio settings fostered friendships as projects were shared during times of plenty. Many artists also made large enough incomes to travel and participate in sketching trips throughout the country, gathering images for later projects.

Whether backdrops for the stage or fine art for residential parlors, these artists heard a similar calling to capture the exotic and the beautiful. This was not uncommon for the previous generations of artists; however, Moses’ generation was unique as there was a new unifying factor – the mass-production of these same painted scenes in a scenic studio setting. Their studio work contributed to their fine art work and vice versa, but as a group effort both in and out of each studio.

The rise of the scenic studio system created a vast network where artists found not only work, but also fellowship. The work was also constant as artists became part of a large studio staff. For the first time, artists like Moses could make their living solely painting in one location for theatrical venues from coast to coast. The generation before Moses created artworks for businesses other than the stage as they traveled to make a living. Early and mid-nineteenth century scenic artists traveled from town to town, and painted much more than theatre curtains while in any one location.

They supplemented their income with jobs as scientific illustrators, engravers, fresco artists, carriage painters, and sign painters, just to name a few. Many from the generation after Moses did something similar as the field of scenic art continued to evolve into film, television, and theme parks. Like their mid-nineteenth century predecessors, mid-twentieth century scenic artists painted for new venues on new substrates with new tools and new techniques. Their work reflected an ever-shifting aesthetic.

Thomas Moses worked as a scenic artist for forty-seven years when he was contracted to paint the Fort Scott scenery in 1924, having started his career in 1877. By this time, he had painted hundreds, if not thousands, of backdrops for theaters, opera houses, fraternal halls, Scottish Rite stages, circus spectacles, and world fair midways. He was a popular and a well-known artist throughout the country, having painted for famous personalities such as Joe Jefferson and Helena Modjeska.

By the time Moses painted the Fort Scott scenery, he was referred to as the”Dean of Scenic Artists.” Like those of his generation, he was a scenic artist and fine artist who sought to capture the beauty of nature with paint. Moses eloquently wrote of his landscape paintings, describing the rippling waters of the woodland stream and the lights that played on a distant mountainside. He shared these discoveries not only in his memoirs, but also in newspaper articles, and with his fellow artists. He belonged to many fine art societies and artistic groups, including New York’s Salmagundi Club, Chicago’s Palette & Chisel Club, and the Laguna Beach Art Association.

He celebrated the artistic accomplishments of his friends, even when their careers soared far beyond his own. He clipped articles of painting assistants from long ago who later became international successes and rejoiced with them. It appears as if they all celebrated each other’s victories as they strived toward a common goal through each individual artwork. His only regrets were not spending enough time painting outside of the studio to hone his own skills. Moses made friends for life and their fondness for him was apparent over the years as they sent postcards, planned outings, and shared dinners. His diary and scrapbook depict those artists whose work he respected and whose company he treasured.

I have mentioned in past posts about the shift in the scenic studio business by the 1920s when a younger generation of entrepreneurs emerged and old alliances ended. “Alliance” may not be the correct word as I believe that there was a genuine respect and appreciation for each other’s work prior to WWI. Studios might bid on the same contract, but there was a jovial competition as work was plentiful. Bidding became more cut-throat in the 1920s and 1930s, especially after work became scarce and a younger generation entered the picture.

The creation of the Fort Scott scenery collection occurs during this period of transition. The ownership of studios, especially those founded by the “old guard,” begins to change hands. This is the case with Sosman and Landis when the Fort Scott scenery collection was created onsite. Although the dry pigment boxes found high above the Fort Scott stage are labeled “Sosman & Landis c/o Scottish Rite Temple Fort Scott, Kansas,” the company had moved to new offices by that time, after residing at Clinton Street for thirty three years. Was the onsite painting of Scottish Rite scenery now necessary since a new company (Chicago Studios) was using the Clinton Street shop? Was the Sosman & Landis Company trying to save overhead expense attributed to staffing a large paint studio in downtown Chicago? The diagrams and writings by Moses on the Fort Scott wooden battens held clues to answer this queries.

It is unfortunate that the wooden battens we so carefully removed, bundled, labeled, and shipped to Minnesota were discarded and replaced with new pipe pockets during installation at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center. It was an irreplaceable loss of history for both the theatre and Freemasonry.

To be continued…