Civil War Medical Diorama: Part X

After many, many months I am pleased to report that the diorama is finished!

It was an ambitious project....perhaps too ambitious. After all, the time I had to work on it was between graduate classes, work, and more work. I think it turned out pretty well given the circumstances though.

The diorama in its completed form.

Here we see two men helping a wounded officer into the back of an ambulance. As soon as the patient is secured, the driver will take him to the waiting hospital train.

Once all the patients are loaded, these cars will be connected to a locomotive that will take them by rail to Alexandria, VA. They will then be unloaded and taken to one of the many hospitals in the city like the Grosvener Annex. 

One of the downsides to all this is going back and noticing little things that I could have done differently. However, unlike others ::cough::George Lucas::cough:: I am going to leave it alone and let it stand as it is. I've put a lot into this project, but now the diorama belongs to the visitors of Lee-Fendall House.

Civil War Medical Diorama: Part IX

Woah! An update on the Civil War medical diorama?! Could it be?!?

Firstly, I must sincerely apologize for the recent lack of progress on this project. After I posted the last update, it came time for mid-terms. Then I got sick, which was followed by a small breakdown (but I'm better now). Then there were finals, which was followed by a trip to visit my family over the holidays. But I'm not trying to make excuses about this. I do intend to finish this diorama for once and for all, though.  

I spent a part of this afternoon assembling the hospital car, which proved to be greater pain than I anticipated. Gluing things together have always been the bane of my existence in this hobby....I absolutely detest it. No matter how much pressure you apply or how long you let it set, the model is inevitably going to fall apart. This happened about three or four times with the train car before I finally got it to hold together.  

Fifth time's the charm!

Gluing aside, I'm rather happy with how this has turned out. The sliding doors open and close, and the roof is removable. This latter fact will make it easier to put figures inside for the final display. Not shown are the wheels, which won't be added to the finished product until later.

Just how happy am I to finally get this train car done? Pretty darn happy!

I also took time this evening to assemble one of the ambulances. This also proved troublesome to glue together, but managed to stick after only two tries. 

Another thing I noticed is that the driver's seat has mysteriously vanished (probably the plaything of one our cats). Fortunately it shouldn't be too complicated to reconstruct, so I'll whip one up out of plasticard in the morning.

Lastly, here's a shot of the caboose being primed! I plan to work on it more tomorrow when the weather (and my primer) is more cooperative.

Civil War Medical Diorama: Part VIII

What a productive afternoon! I was able to stop by the Lee-Fendall House after work and get some significant work done on the diorama. This assistant curator/model maker/nerd is quite happy!

It all started with sawing the edges off the railroad tracks. This was essential because they had to fit on the board diagonally due to its odd size. Of course, however, I realized after the fact that I wanted them to go the other direction. 

As the great Homer Simpson says, "Do'h!" 

But upon reflection (and some mild swearing to myself), I realized this was okay and that it actually worked out better. It won't look like the tracks and the road intersect. So I glued them in place and set to work on the trees. Many of them were strategically placed to conceal the staples in the board. I'm thinking I may go out and get another pack or two of trees just to thicken the "woods" up a bit.

Then gravel was added to the train tracks, which was a fairly messy process. The gravel is very loose and so I used a spray adhesive to hold everything in place. Hopefully it worked, but we won't really know until it comes time to move the diorama.

I've been working on the railroad all the live-long day...

After all that, I started working on the dirt roads and finished them in less than 15 minutes.

This is what we had at the end of the day! 

In my opinion, it looks far better than it did on opening night. Seeing this in the museum at its present stage makes me feel a lot better about the whole project. I've always been very critical of my own work (as I imagine most artists are in one way or another). But I'm really liking how the diorama is progressing. 

I just wish I could have gotten to this point a few days ago but, as the French say, c'est la vie.

The next big goal is to get the train cars painted, assembled, and installed. They're sitting on the dining room table, counter, and sideboard (in various pieces). My goal is to have them done by next weekend.

Civil War Medical Diorama: Part VI

Just a brief update without many progress photos since I've been so busy lately: I've just finished two big assignments for school and can now devote most of my time to getting the diorama done. That's pretty important since, you know, the exhibit is opening in less than 48 hours.

Yup. It's coming down to the wire.

Am I nervous? Yes. Am I worried about getting everything done on time? You bet. Would I rather be doing something else? Not a chance! I'm really excited for the opening and look forward to hear what everyone thinks of the diorama. I'm quite proud of the work I've put into it so far.

But now it's time to stock up on coffee and buckle down....things are going to get a little crazy here.

My girlfriend has been very helpful during my paper-writing craze these last few days. Being the wonderful person that she is, Teresa volunteered to paint the train tracks for me while I was agonizing over early 20th century bank architecture. They turned out quite well indeed!

Making tracks!

The minimum goal for the next day or so is to finally finish that %#&^@*$ firing line, an ambulance, and both train cars. Even if I can't get the remaining figures done by opening night, with those in the diorama I feel that we'll have something solid at least.

And just in case you're all wondering....

I'll try to get another update in before the opening, but I can't make any guarantees at this point.

Civil War Medical Diorama: Part V

Two updates in one day?! What is the world coming to?

I managed to finish off a few more figures and some stretchers this afternoon (though not the Federal firing line that, for some reason, has been the bane of my existence for some weeks now). They came together pretty quickly and I'm pleased with the results.

A few wounded Union soldiers. Is it just me, or does the cavalryman on the left look an awful lot like Chuck Norris?

Oh no! The Rebs shot Chuck Norris! How is that even possible?!?

And here we have the only Confederate who will be in the diorama. He's going to be just in front of the Union firing line to show the progression of the battle.

So that's all for the diorama right now. I'll try to push through that firing line in the next few days and then start on the railway tracks and cars. There's some big stuff coming this way soon!

And as if I didn't have enough on my plate already, I'm planning to do some special pieces for the coming holidays. Just some fun stuff that I really hope you all like. Stay tuned for that! First figure is already done and will be posted on Halloween!

Civil War Medical Diorama: Part IV

Just a really quick update. Following a very successful "Spirits, Suffering, and Society" event last night, we did a little bit of work in the exhibit. The diorama base is installed and the first 20 or so figures have been added.

Here we see my friend Kyle (the exhibit curator) working on putting some of the trees together.

The figures haven't been permanently affixed yet, but this was just to give us and idea of where things will be placed in the finished product. There are still plenty of figures that need to be added (not to mention ambulances, fences, train tracks, and hospital cars). This is just the beginning.

Myself with the diorama. I have to admit, everything looks a lot more impressive under Plexiglas. Not so impressive, however, is my hair (to be fair, though, this was after a long event).

Also, here's a little sneak peak at the rest of the exhibit....

And that's all for now! I need to back to the grindstone, but please stay tuned for more updates!