After our photoshop induction I felt relatively confident in my ability with it and decided to test this out on my initial idea for a sign. I used a mixture of different images from online to create what I think would be something you would see outside a tavern. For the actual design of the sign I wanted to incorporate lettering as well as an image, however after some research I found out that in medieval times there was no lettering on signs because many people couldn’t read, seems obvious in hindsight, but something I hadn’t quite realised until now. As a result, this has confirmed I want to make my set fantasy(something I have been muddling over until now), as it gives me some leeway on materials I am able to use as well as the lettering on the sign, plus it just makes it that much better. 
Month: January 2018
Floor Boards
These floor boards have been a pesky business, after cutting out, scratching and varnishing each one ready to be stuck down, I was quickly advised by David that floor boards in medieval time were actually much longer as that was the easiest way for them to cut and place quickly. This was a large oversight on my part which I should have researched and realised sooner rather than waste a lot of time – lesson learned.
I have now cut and varnished the proper floor boards ready to use which look good. Hopefully I can use the old floor boards elsewhere so as to not waste the time and material used on them.
The Welcome Collection
The Welcome Collection was an incredibly thought-provoking visit upon the recommendation of a flat mate, looking deep into the anatomy and insight of different cultures as well as the history of medicine. A fascinating exhibition looking at how different artists interpret the body really expanded some of the ways I think about structure and understand how people cope with life when thrown a bad hand (pun unintended).
It’s not exactly relevant to the current project, but I found looking at some of the old prosthetic limbs really interesting, almost cyborg or android like, which is perhaps something I will explore more in the future.
Stone Wall
This wall was quite an arduous task of getting right, I’m still not quite sure I’m finished with it as I keep seeing little things to add or take away, but I am happy with how its turned out and think its a convincing take on a stone wall. I found the key to getting it right was to make the painting as random as possible, to give it a real stoney feel.
I used kapaline foam board and tore the protective paper off revealing this easy to mark foam. After I engraved it using the back of a scalpel and technical pencil, I started painting areas with different shades of grey, although I soon realised I should have used wet brushing to get in all the cracks and crevices before instead of after this so as to make sure non of the foam is showing through. However, after some more finer work, I used a dry brushing technique to give it a lovely rocky finish.
Medieval Table
I made this table out of PVC plastic and obeche wood, which has been sanded, scratched and painted with acrylic as well as a varnish to look like an authentic wooden table, which I like to think is pretty convincing!
Making Some Barrels and Stools
Over Christmas I decided to make a start on my colour model, and after a quick trip to the amazing 4D Model shop, I made a couple of barrels and a few stools to get a better idea of how it would turn out. I was pleasantly surprised with them and am really pleased with the final product, I’m sure I will go back into them later on to give them more of an aged look along with everything else, but a good start so far.
Using White card for the barrels I cut out the plank shapes, engraved and wore them down a bit before slightly bending them, then painted with acrylic and stuck them together. I then used painted paper for the metal strips along the outside of the top and bottom of the barrels.
I used PVC plastic for the stools so that I could sand and round the edges, then cut into them to give it that authentic bar stool look. Then painted using acrylic.
Bending Sticks 