Commission: Untitled…

A few weeks ago I finished the ‘penultimate’ layout commission of 2024. It has been a busy year for building layouts - Leatown, Rushcliffe, this one and Fancy Another Beer - and add to that Kohlenbachbrücke all completed, with others planned and at least two more started. Today, let me introduce, well ‘untitled’…

This project, ‘untitled’ was born in March. I’ve described it as ‘European Shelf’ for whilst it has flavours of Poland it is deliberately location agnostic, at least to some degree. A blank canvas for my customers collection of locomotives and rolling stock, somewhere trains run slowly, stop, pause, shunt, somewhere that we watch trains.

Typical in my construction, 1200 x 260mm, a two track secondary line is singled and a revised track plan sees an industrial branch spur joining the main, the required cross over assumed off stage. No signalling to distract or place the location, the bridges framing the view. Almost everything you see here scratch-built or kit-bashed specifically for the location. 

 

The palette of colour is slightly greener than my usual preferred autumnal or winter - this time I’m following the path of Kohl and aping the same shades, resulting in a two tone scene - the grey/brown of the ballast and structures with the lush green of the foliage. Just a token splash of yellow here and there to provide a focus for the eye when no trains are running.

The stage is a neutral space where movement and colour is introduced by the actors. Viewed at a low angle, across the track, the small space punctuated by deliberate view blocks feels much larger. Exciting too, glimpsing arriving traims through new viewing angles, closing one eye and squinting to become one and standing in the scene, watching yes but with the sounds, smells and physical sensation of the railway close at hand, a real experience, both model and imagined.

 

 

In these photos you see my little red HLB shunter shuffling around the stock from Kohlenbachbrücke as that is all I had to hand which was appropriate. In fact, in some ways, the overlap of the projects was a deliberate and useful act. KBB becoming the practice piece for ideas on composition shading and architecture that could be realised on a larger stage. 

As is now somewhat customary I’ve done a video, more of a tour if ideas than an operational demonstration I hope it helps to flesh out perhaps more of the technique than I have mentioned here - as well as hearing all of this and the energy I have for the project in my own voice. 

The danger with layout build commissions is a loss of energy for my own work - and that does happen indirectly. During their build I certainly don’t make much progress on anything myself, but it would seem that my deliberate choices about what I will and won’t build - to protect British N and North American HO - have worked. 

I’ve just finished another design commission and have a few more on the books. If you’d like to work with me to perhaps work through a layout scheme that you’re stuck with, or even, start from a blank canvas get in touch (there is a form in the menu top left, or you can email me through my Facebook page (no Facebook account required)) . The design process is a useful starting point for you to build the project, or as in this case, for me to price up and scope the work required to realise it in my own hand. Until next time though, more soon…

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