Author: waszut_barrett@me.com

“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).

“In making full-length drawing of a female figure in costume from nature, arrange the drapery to give a final impression of the contour of the figure.  Do not have the figure entirely hidden away by heavy folds of cloth.  A poor draftsman usually shows a female figure as a mass of drapery, with head and feet obtruding from it.  The thing is to make the gown appear as if it were really enveloping the human figure; to suggest the figure underneath by carefully drawing its every curve and line an arranging all the folds of the drapery to bring out this point.”

Excerpt from Frank Atkinson’s “Scene Painting and Bulletin Art” (1916, page 68.

Attached is a perfect example of the figure drawing by a “poor draftsman.”  This small drop is for the Vision Scene (17th degree) currently in storage at the Winona Masonic theatre.  Although the figure painters at Volland Studios (St. Louis) were far superior to those at other studios, this example is particularly bad for a Sosman & Landis scenic artist.  Over the years, I have recorded some of the worst figure-drawing examples in these small scenes. They typically fall behind the temple ruins in the Volcano drop and are fairly obscured by the surround and the dramatic lighting.  This is the scene where the thunder rumbles, the lightening flashes, and the volcano explodes – sending rivulets of lava down the mountain.  Pretty fun!

It does makes me wonder if these small drops were intended as a training ground.  However, maybe they just indicate busy times and unskilled labor.

The Presidential debates in the United States of America brought the color of French Mineral Orange to mind!  Here are details from Hades at the Pasadena Scottish Rite, ca. 1902 – Sosman and Landis (refurbished and installed in 1925).

It is important to understand human anatomy…and always take drawing classes.  Otherwise, the human skull may become a bowling ball.  For me, this makes the hell scene just a little less scary…

“A good, quiet, general tint may be obtained by mixing Dutch Pink with black, Prussian blue, or blue verditer”

“Light ochre with green lake or emerald green gives a rich green and may be changed into cool green by adding Prussian blue or indigo.” (Frank Atkinson, Scene Painting and Bulletin Art, 1916, page 165)

I am the guest speaker at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center tonight for the Forest Lake Lodge stated meeting! It is a wonderful opportunity to talk about my artistic and intellectual contributions during the planning and construction stages of this fraternal complex.

This new complex includes a 425-seat jewel box theatre, currently awaiting the Scottish Rite scenery collection from the Fort Scott, Kansas. I supervised the removal and transportation of this historic collection eleven month ago and consists of 92 drops.  This 1924 collection was created by Thomas Gibbs Moses (at the age of 68) and will one day hang from dedicated line sets that were designed by Dan Culhane at SECOA for the theatre consulting firm of Schuler Shook.

Detail images of this stunning collection will frequently appear on this page in the upcoming months!

“French Ultramarine: extremely powerful and semi-transparent; the accepted substitute for the more expensive genuine ultramarine; indispensable, permanent; non-poisonous.”

(Frank Atkinson’s “Scene Painting and Bulletin Art,” 1916, page 20)

“The medium for binding distemper is known as “size,” or sizing.  For making it, gelatine is preferred, although the best grade of White Cabinet Glue answers very well and is most commonly used.  Drop four or five pounds into the cauldron, cover it with water, and fill the water vessel two-thirds full of water.  Apply the heat, and when the glue is melted you will have extra strong size.  One dipper full of strong size with four dippers of clear hot water will produce working size.” Excerpt from Frank Atkinson’s “Scene Painting and Bulletin Art” (1916, page 154).

Advice from Wendy: My glue supplier is Bjorn Industries out of North Carolina.  I have discussed my need for animal glue during restoration projects with their chemist and we decided on their product HC351.  Rabbit skin glue is my second favorite to work with as an alternative. Also, NEVER put size water in plastic – only metal or glass.  Also, do not seal the jar, cover loosely.  Otherwise, you create your own little science experiment, allowing the glue to begin a rotting process.

“Profile Cuts on Netting” (Frank Atkinson, Scene Painting and Bulletin Art, 1916, page 194)

“Wings with much profile are very expensive, and it is difficult to join them to the borders, since they must be painted separately; so, in place of them, we render wings and border complete on a full-sized stretch, and when finished we take a sharp knife and cut out the entire creation and all of the openings found inside the principle outline in a most elaborate manner. The center of the stretch is, of course, wasted, and can be used for for covering small set pieces in other productions.”

“Lemon Yellow: a beautiful, light, vivid color; in body and opacity nearly equal to Naples Yellow, but much purer and more lucid in color and tint, and at the same time not liable to change by damp, sulphurous, or impure air, or by the action of light, or by steel palette knife, or by mixture with white lead, zinc, or other pigments; this makes it a valuable addition to the palette.  It is principally adapted to high lights and produces agreeable effects when glazed over green.”

From ScenePainting and Bulletin Art by Frank Atkinson, 1916, page 18