Art Deco Wall Relief - Scenic Construction
One of the modules that I completed for my degree was Scenic Construction Principles and Practice. A certain group project involved designing and making a section of scenery. My coursemates and I were set the task of individually designing our own scenery flat that resembled an Art Deco style wall relief and producing corresponding technical drawings. My work was one of those chosen to be progressed to construction.
The flat was made from 6mm Medium Density Fireboard (MDF), supported by a frame of 20mm Planned Square Edge (PSE) timber; this involved the use of an air staple gun, filler and sandpaper. The reveals and sill were then formed using 18mm PSE.
The wall relief design panel consists of 6mm, 9mm 12mm and 18mm MDF; the shapes were cut on a band saw and stapled into place. Two lengths of 200mm PSE were then cut and attached to the relief panel. This feature held the panel in place on the flat wall and allowed it to be removed without difficulty, making transporting the scenery easier. A base layer of paint was then applied.
I worked with a teammate to achieve the effect of a brushed brass frame, while two others painted the relief design to resemble marble. I also spent some time with another teammate, working on painting techniques and referring to photos of limestone, in order to make the MDF flat resemble limestone bricks. Once happy with my practice samples, I applied a base coat and then enjoyed using several sponges and multiple colours and shades that I had mixed in order to achieve the effect that I wanted. My coursemates were very complimentary of the finished result.
