Mosslanda: Night Shift - Structure…

In the previous instalment I shared how the initial sketch had been translated into a physical layout form.  That blank canvas was crying out for some mock ups but instead, I went straight to plastic…

This half relief, half fronted warehouse was a simple proposition. 40 thou core (thickness isn’t visible really in this position, and it was to hand) with Slaters embossed sheet overlays. A bit more detail to add, but the basic form looks as I hoped, placed at the end of the long siding.

Stepping back for a wider view you’ll also notice less reflection on the sky. This is now formed from a piece of black 220gsm paper/card. Cut to form a curve from backscene to pelmet this has drastically improved the visual quality of the night sky, and here, it was tempting to leave things like this! 

But… note that shadow from the 08, on the backscene. For this reason I’d always planned an ultra low relief warehouse along most of the back edge - to ‘catch’ the shadows AND brighten and reflect a little more light into the scene.

This required more consideration, and neither of the two mock-ups shown above are quite right. The balance is important here… I think I’ve settled on something long AND tall. This should give a stronger feel and whilst it will enclose the scene, that was, I remind myself, always the point!

Taking small steps forwards at the end of the working day, modelling at a comfortable pace. Small projects mean visible progress… equally, you could apply this to your larger layout, breaking it down into a series of smaller scenes and working on each in turn, at your own steady pace.

Hopefully, with a prevailing wind, I’ll have created the taller, longer structure in styrene by the weekend. Night Shift was never a long term project, rather a quick experiment, an idea to play with light and shadow in the smaller scale. For that is is delivering, and some. Until next time, more soon…

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