The summer of colourful kitsch continues! Whilst at the Keighley Model Railway show, I spotted that Mumfy's Models had a rather nice concrete seaside pavilion shelter kit, in laser-cut MDF. Available in multiple scales, I thought for a change that I'd model in 0 scale.
The Spring saw us in Wales, so I took the opportunity to photograph some of the shelters on the coast. Tywyn above (the pic rather underselling the gale-force winds and manky weather)...
...though it was rather nicer a few days later in Aberystwyth.
It's quite a nice, simple kit, not too many pieces.
I chose to over-complicate things mindyou. Wanting a bit of texture on it, I used sandpaper, double-sided-taped onto it then the window apertures cut out.
Glazed with transparent plastic from packaging material. A bit of graffiti too, modelled on Aberystwyth.
Seagull poo on the roof. An interesting new modelling challenge...
Because the shelter was identical on each side, I decided to make the most of it for the final photographs, and model it double-sided. Sunny on the one, rainy (typical British day at the coast) on the other.
To which end, the folding base was designed to be too identical scenes. It was made to fit into a plastic storage box, the idea being that I'd be shooting on location.
It would be quite a simple base; only a few details, like the drain gratings from old Hornby 00 scale platform fences.
The ornate railings along the promenade were made from the leftover bits from last years Model Village project- the tops of the dolls-house front garden railings.
Working streetlamps were installed, though on testing a few of the bulbs were blown (these are old, they've been in the scrap-box for maybe 20 years).
Bins from plasticard square-section and channel.
Here's another modelling challenge. Plastic fence of unknown vintage, chopped down into takeaway boxes.
I've always thought that figures for model railways are the weak link, tending to be blobby and misshapen. In recent years, photo-scanning and 3D-printing have revolutionised this field of modelling though. I've a project in mind using such figures in 1/32nd scale at some point but don't have a lot of experience with them. This project would give me a chance to have a go modelling, modifying, and painting them.
They're a mix, from 'Scale Scenery and Figures' and 'Smart Models'. Sprayed black, then dry-brushed with muted tones, then washed over with Citadel nuln oil to bring out the creases and shadows.
Using watered-down PVA to do puddles on the rainy side.
Oh yeah, the plan to shoot on location... there were some delays in building which meant it would have been too much of a rush to shoot actually in Wales (and the Spring weather was a bit naff anyway). A couple of large prints of the seaside taken on that holiday though, a board, and a sunny day at home meant I could shoot in rather more comfort.
A lot of my other projects have been quite bright, colourful, and cheerful. There's (deliberately) a slightly scuzzy undercurrent with this one though, reflective a bit more of the British seaside. Graffiti, casually dropped litter, bored kids, junk food, and gulls.
The lighting has also added a bit of a 'Martin Parr' feel to it, with the borderline over-exposed photographs and candid, slightly-exploitative angles to the shots (there I go, using that University Photography degree). I enjoyed creating cameo scenes on this one, particularly the bored kids stuck here whilst the parents chatted and ate their lunch. All the scenes were based on real things seen (this was something spotted a couple of years ago whilst we were in Wales, the kid using her ball as a footstool whilst her sister whined at her to stop in case the ball popped, their brother spitting on the floor. Charming).
I particularly liked this little cameo, though the angle of the bin shows a problem that came up; the sun was so bright on the day, it warped the plasticard flagstones.
Sunny day...
...and a rather more gloomy, grim day. Ah, how many holidays have I spent huddling out of the wind and rain like this? Rain effects with spray-painted gloss varnish with silver glitter sprinkled in to catch the light a bit.
More cameos. The grumpy oldies, the bored kids whilst the parents chat. The little kid looking sadly at her inflatable punctured and dumped by the bins by her mom (again, all these cameos on both sides based on real things seen at the seaside).
Lets end on something a bit jollier then, and kids innocently playing whilst their mom indulgently watches. There, that's a more cheerful middle-class tone to the project!
And in the mag.
An interesting one, this. Quite a small scene, but lots of detailing, and enjoyable to do. I don't often work in 0, but I might be doing a big project in the scale next year. It was nice then to be able to use this as a bit of a dry-run ready for that build...
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