Hi guys! I am working up a rough draft for an online book that I am planning on regarding the art of making storyboard dioramas.The rough outline will be:

Part 1-Early Aviation Storyboard Dioramas.

1-"Keepers Of The Flame 1918-1928".(Jenny Canuck ,1/16th scale)

2-"Some Say ,He Walked Away" (Albatros,1/16th scale)

3-"Out Of The Shadows" (Nieuport 28 1/16th scale)

4-"Loss of Innocence,Will It Ever Be The Same ?" (Backyard Flyer, 1/16th scale)


Part 2-HMS Victory Storyboard Diorama.

"Drumming Daybreak" (H.M.S. Victory, 1/72 scale)


Part 3-Old West Railroad Storyboard Diorama .

"Once Upon A Time" ( Movie Set 1/24 scale)


Cheers! John.

I am sorry ,I forgot to explain what that post was really all about.I am working on an online book about storyboard dioramas which are relatively new to the world of modeling ,as we have known it.I just thought that I would give you guys a little preview of the rough draft for the online book.It will not be on any specific genre of modeling but more of a new type of modeling where the story is primary rather than what is being modeled.The early aviation dioramas,the HMS Victory diorama and my new railroad diorama will each have a chapter in this online book, not from a how to build.....perspective but from a how to tell a good story perspective.It is simply an out growth of what I have experienced in my own home over the past ten years that my Victory has been on display.I have found that the viewer is usually more interested in the storyline than the model ship, especially the kids.
It is my belief that the future of modeling is in the story being told not just the model itself.I have noticed that museums themselves have been slowly adapting to this new reality, this knew way of thinking.The modern viewer is no longer satisfied with just looking at objects but wants more than just visual interaction with the objects they are viewing.They are no longer satisfied with looking at just old artifacts without really understanding what they are looking at,very few even stop long enough to read the displays sign.
Natural history museums and their modelers have known this for a long time.Full scale models of animals going about even their daily routines can be very interesting if they tell a good story that the viewers imagination can get involved in.Just displaying a bunch of skins or bones are not enough in todays modern world where viewers are used to so much more visual stimulation.Let's face it objects in glass cases without some kind of story are boring in this modern world.This is where the visual storyboard diorama comes into the picture.It is easy to initially grab the viewers attention with the objects being displayed but to hold that attention for any length of time their must also be a visual storyline that they can relate to in their mind.
Storyboard dioramas are not easy to do and are a real challenge to any modeler .Trying to tell your story in a one frame movie with no dialogue,movement or music etc.. can be difficult but very rewarding if the modeler can pull it off well.It used to be thought that shadow boxes were the highest expression of our art form,that may be true but storyboard dioramas have to be right up there to.
Cheers! John.

Introduction 1


I really appreciate feedback both good and bad.Yes,some of it has been negative and some downright hostile but in this new world of communication you can write what you want and publish it yourself and if you have something interesting to say it will get read.No more gatekeepers between the author and his potential audience.If you like it read it, if not don't bother, that is the new standard for what gets read.
Some say that I am claiming to have invented something new to the world of art and modeling .Nothing could be further from the truth.As I have explained dioramas have been around for a long time ,nothing new there.Storyboards are well known to the visual arts and movie making etc...But storyboard dioramas are relatively a new idea.
You can prove this to yourself,just Google Storyboard Dioramas nothing except what I have recently put up.Now Google The Art of the Storyboard Diorama again nothing.Now Google The Art of The Storyboard you will find a few references to movie making production but no mention of dioramas.
What I am trying to say is my book will be an attempt to see dioramas in a new context ,that of an artistic tool to tell a visual story using the diorama as the medium .
In a museum setting you are working with the general public that may or may not understand what they are seeing.They may have absolutely know idea or interest in airplanes,railroads, ships or whatever.It may only be a forced school trip that they are on and they really don't what to be there.But models and stories have been around forever it is almost in our genes I would say.It is this group of people that I am hoping will stop and give my stuff a second look and hopefully somehow be influenced by it.

Until I get some better pics these will have to do for now.A lot of the pics are of the diorama under construction.This pic illustrates what I mean by the checkerboard roof commanding the viewers initial attention.

I think this is a brilliant idea! I had an idea, similar to this when the "evolution" campain was on. Telling a story with a dio. (not sure if this is what you mean, this is what i have been thinking about, so it might be the same.)

Either doing it in line, with several dios, telling a story, for example a factory assembly line, or several firgues, getting geared up, training, then going into combat, then showing the aftermath. Or using a circular base to show it from start to finish, (evolution).

Looking forward to seeing more!

Outline 4

Storyboarding, What is it ?

Storyboarding goes back to the 1920's and even earlier.Walt Disney developed it into an art using drawings posted in a logical sequence on a wall.Drawing could be added or deleted depending on the storylines development in what were called brain storming sessions.These brainstorming sessions allowed for everybodys creative input and could be quite lively with the animator/pitchman acting out the various roles of the characters.Evidently Walt was a genius at this and some of his best performances were never recorded.
Storyboarding for dioramas is a little different in that the brainstorming sessions are mostly mental sessions that the storyboard dioramist works out in his own mind ,before anything is actually put down on paper .What to leave in and what to leave out? that is the big question.These mental sketches are then translated into a 3D diorama sets by the dioramist.Using these sets, a series of storyboard pictures can be created that tell his story in a logical sequence.
This is different than anything that I have seen or heard of before and is why I had such a hard time answering Shep's question "of what is a storyboard diorama anyway." A storyboard diorama is something like a series of shadowbox dioramas linked together by what I hope is an interesting storyline.

Outline 5

Storyboard type dioramas are best suited to a museum type setting. It has been an accepted norm in the past that if it needs explanation then it is probably a poor diorama.Normally I would agree with this statement but rules are made to be broken.Isn't that what art is really all about anyway?
Ideally ,in this case ,it would be wise to have a guide or other knowledgeable person there to answer questions and point the viewer in the right direction.
Storyboard dioramas are specifically intended for a museum type of environment.They are meant to educate yes but in an entertaining way.Most of the general public have no idea what they are looking at, so some form of guidance is necessary.

The Camel is situated at the back right hand corner of the diorama.I placed it here for close viewer inspection.The guns of course are the big attraction here.They are meant to look like they are fake and made from tin or wood and are brightly painted.This is for a lot of viewers the first time that they would have seen a WW1 aircraft fuselage up close.The radial engine is especially interesting for those who have never seen one before.I have left the fuselage open but of course for transport it probably would have been covered.(that old artistic license again)The back half has already been battened down and a large tarp should take care of the rest.The flying circus sign is a little bit of free advertising.
WW1 fighter airplanes were also extensively used for study purposes by universities teaching aeronautics.

The old Ford CNR truck is awaiting the driver who has stopped outside the door of the rest room, in anticipation of a long road trip to the rail yards.It is in not the unusual postilion of having its engine looked at for water or oil leaks before the long journey.The wing crates have yet to be loaded on and secured.I sure hope there is enough room in the flatbed for them otherwise they will have to be secured to the airplane fuselages side.