Scenic art: new clarification

It seems that the term "scenic artist" still presents some confusion to people unfamiliar with the term who are new to my work, so I'm writing a quick clarificiation today.

Many people associate the word "scenic" with the word "landscape", and assume that as a scenic artist, I am primarily or exclusively a landscape painter. While much of my mural work and some of my fine art paintings involve landscapes of one kind or another, and while I enjoy painting landscapes and the landscape components of my differnet projects, this is only one facet of the scenic artist's trade.

Most simply put, a scenic artist works on sets, that is, the scenery created for live theater, dance, television and film production, theme park exhibits and rides, casinos, industrial and trade shows, retail outlets, restaurants and any other situation where walls, foors, ceilings, and furnishings serve, in addition to their obvious functions, an entertainment purpose. (Designers and artisans specializing in this work are often now collectively referred to as the the "themed entertainment" business.)

Specifically, scenic artists typically create the final finishes on surfaces and objects created by other artisans. For instance, a scenic would paint the Tuscan mural in an Italian restarant over a wall prepared by carpenters and plasterers, or a distressed/antique paint job on the restaurant's tables and chairs.

A good scenic artist can make drywall look like wood, plywood look like metal, a new table look old, a flat wall look three dimensional, bring the outdoors inside, make a jungle out of a stucco wall, etc. Also, a good scenic works in three dimensions as well, creating textures, reliefs, sculptures or whatever is required to achieve the intended effect.

In addition to drawing and painting, I am well versed in finish carpentry, furniture contruction, wood turning, basic welding and metal fabrication, gilding, moldmaking and casting using plaster, fiber glass and other composite materials.

A good scenic is also part designer, because our job is usually to realize other people's ideas, and often times to create a new way of building or finishing something to make those ideas "come true". In this light, I think it is extremely important for a good scenic to be well versed in art history, the history of architecture, contemporary design and bulding practices, and especially these days, green and environmentally friendly technologies and alternatives to the methods of the past.

While somewhat complicated, I hope this post simplifies the differences between a "scenic artist" and landscape painter, faux finish artist, muralist, painting contractor and many of the other terms commonly used to describe our work, and also why I proudly continue to describe myself as a scenic artist even though the majority of my work these days falls somewhat outside the themed entertainment community.

3D Scenic Art: Marine Corps Command Museum

Its been the busiest six weeks of my career since my last post about my show at May's Ray at Night event. In addition to new mural and faux finish projects in a couple of private residences, I've had two new jobs delving into my broader skill set as a true scenic artist.

In the entertainment world (theater, film, exhibits, etc.), scenic artists not only paint, but sculpt, texture and finish constructions in whatever way called for in the overall design. I generally refer to these parts of the job as "3D" skills (as in, working in three dimensions), contrasted with the "2D" (two dimensional) realm of pure painting.

In May, working with local exhibit company Bang! Creative, I created an elaborate 3D texture for a display about tunnel warfare during the Viet Nam war for the Command Museum at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot here in San Diego.

The "tunnels" were built onsite by exhibits specialist Chuck Archuletta and the finished look designed by Chuck and Sean Laflin at Bang! Creative. I carved and textured over 400 square feet of styrofoam sheet in my studio to resemble the clay and sand soil of the Chu Chi province of Viet Nam as it would look in an excavated section.



The foam was then hardcoated and installed in sections onsite over the tunnel structure.



After filling and blending the seams of the foam pieces into the continuous horizontal bands of soil and rock, I painted the entire surface in the rich reds and purple-browns of the Chu Chi soil.



Chuck then added displays of photographs, text and artifacts from Viet Nam to complete the exhibit.



The Command Museum is a fascinating archive of Marine Corps history from its very beginnings up through the current Iraq conflict, and the tunnel display is just one piece of a new exhibit, an entire hall devoted to the history of USMC participation in the Viet Nam war set to open in July 2007.