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Course: THEA 272 Stagecraft

Scene Painting (for 5/4/99)

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Paint staff:

• Scenic Artist
• Charge man
• Painters

Scale:

• -Seeing the whole
• -Screwing up something big

Plan of Attack:

• -Everything is multiple step
• -Plan steps in relation to drying time

Work space:

Floor (horizontal)	Frame (vertical)
Hard to see whole Easy to reach Long handle brushes needed Marking long lines is easy Wet wash techniques possible Easily avoid drips, spatters Must protect underside Best for spattering Requires dedicated floor space Sawdust and trash problems	Easy to see whole Need ladders, etc. for reach Regular handle brushes Long line marking is difficult Wet washes are impossible Drip and spatter problems Paint-thru is no problem Poor for spattering Requires least space Little problem with trash

Light:

• -Incandescent, not fluorescent
• -White, full intensity, no color
• -Color test with a hair dryer on small material

Process:

Preparation:

• Kraft paper, Bogus paper
• 2" masking tape
• Staples
• Chalk line
• Fans & tents

A. Surface Preparation

Special processes for:

• Drops
• Flats

1. Size: Shrinks fabric
   • Glue size for opaque painting. Usually 30% vinyl glue.
   • Starch size for dye painting. Usually Argo cooked laundry starch.

2. Prime: Fills fabric
   • Glue size and whiting or pigment.
   • Usually done in one step with sizing for opaque painting.
   • For some purposes, some old paints can be used to size/prime.

3. Base: Underpainting
   • Basic colors for the painting to be applied.
   • Usually a middle tone of the paint design.

B. Layout:

Transfer methods:

1. Direct drawing
2. Grid transfer
3. Projection
4. Pouncing
5. Stencilling

Tools and supplies:

• -Charcoal: vine (stick) & powdered
• -Chalk: powdered for pounce bags, sticks
• -Marking stick (bamboo)
• -Lining stick (bevelled straightedge)
• -Felt tip markers (water base)
• -Snap line (chalk line)
• -Pounce equipment:
• Kraft paper
• Pounce wheel
• Pounce bag
• Flogger
• Sandpaper

C. Painting:

• -Paint mixer ("Jiffy" mixer)
• -Paint sample dryer (hair dryer)
• -Brushes
1. Priming (6"-8" wide)
2. Lay-in (4"-6" wide)
3. Decorating (1-1/2"-3")
4. Lining (1/4"-1")
• -Lining stick
• -Rollers, covers and handles
• -Sponges
• -Sprayers
• Hudson pump
• Hand

Application:

Lining:

• Demands attention to apparent light sources
• Minimum of 3 tones

1. Highlight
2. [Base – previously applied]
3. Shade
4. Shadow

Texturing:

• Wet-blend or scumble
• Spatter
• Sponge
• Rag-roll
• Comb
• Drybrush
• Crosshatch

Brush Do’s and Don’ts

• -Don’t mix water and oil-base brushes
• -Clean All brushes before paint dries in them
1. Use dishwashing detergent to clean and soften the bristles
2. Work the cleaning up into the dense bristles by the ferrule
3. Rinse until clear water comes out
4. Shake out all water
5. Shape the bristles before hanging
6. Hang brushes to dry in air
• -When working with several brushes and colors simultaneously, keep a bucket of water for temporary rinsing and storage of brushes. This does not clean them!

Application Problems:

A. The designer gives you the job of painting a pictorial drop for a production. The job will be all yours and you have adequate time to complete it properly. What do you do?

1. Obtain a painters’ elevation – What is it?
2. Prepare the drop. – What do you use and how do you do it?
3. Size the drop. – With what, how?
4. Lay out the design. – With what, how?
5. Lay in the base.
6. Lay in the large detail and texturing. Work background to foreground.
7. Line in shade tones.
8. Line in shadow tones.
9. Line in highlights.
10. Fine detail and overall treatment.

B. The designer gives you the job of painting the walls of the interior set of an old Victorian mansion. The design calls for distressed wallpaper and woodgrain. You have adequate time for proper execution.

1. Study woodgrain and old wallpaper for colors and treatment.
2. Practice achieving the effects on small unused flats.
3. Lay in the background for the wallpaper (after surface preparation)
4. Stencil the design (how, with what?)
5. Apply distressing (how, with what?)
6. Lay in base tone for wood.
7. Apply dominant shades.
8. Apply dominant grain.
9. Apply fine grain
10. Apply lines of boards
11. Apply aging technique
12. Glaze wood area if desired.

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