Tugboat Diorama

Absolutely amazing work and photos! The backdrop is GREEEEEAAAT! I swear, those pics look like REAL LIFE!

One of my favorite pieces, ever---seriously! EXCELLENT WORK!!!!

OH! COOOL!!!!!

MAN! I didn't even see the "Nessie" in the first Photo! That's so COOL!

I love "hypothetical", imaginative dioramas like this! I give it a HUGE TRIPLE !

Can't wait to see more photos! Honestly, I LOVE IT!!!!!

There's more pictures on my Fotki page. I'm going to take some outside in better light tomorrow.

Why did the guy drop the oars? Well, its kinda like "up the creek without a paddle"...Plus he's so facinated with Betty that he has no clue of the impending danger.

WHAT?!?! ONLY ONE PHOTO???

C'mon man! Give us more!!! This looks absolutely STUNNING!!! The weathering and rust on the tugs looks fabulous!

Just one question--why'd the guy drop his oars??? 

Finally finished.

 More pictures: http://public.fotki.com/DaveInTheHat/davetown/tugboats-along-the-/

I used Winsor & Newton oil paints for the water color. I should have things ready to pour the clear in a few days.

Here's a link to pictures I took as I was building it.

http://public.fotki.com/DaveInTheHat/davetown/tugboats-along-the-/ 

I got the new base almost finished. I still have some details to add. Like bushes and more weeds and ground cover. I mounted the tugboats with silicone. I have to do some work around the water lines and add some slime looking stuff to the hauls. I need some seaweed too.

Love the new bridge Dave - I noticed the carved out styrofoam in tbe background - are you re-doing the Tug Graveyard layout as well ? 

Dave- Maybe an abandoned stretch of railroad line would be better than a road. The rails could be all rusted up with weeds growing all over the place. Add debris such as broken crates and miscellaneous junk strawn about. Scatter some 1/8" squares of crinkled tissue (not facial) paper around to add to the effect. Just to give it the sense of being an abandoned part of the world.

Take this as just an off the cuff comment, its your diorama and you are the artist.

Mike T.

telsono wrote:

Dave - maybe a railroad bridge that's out of use may get that rusty, but would a highway bridge? The worst condition back water highway bridge I have seen still had at least 50% of the paint still visible. Aluminum paint is used a lot in these situations. The city or county road department would be one this one to clean her up. Especially come near election time. Just my 2 cents. Mike T.

Sometimes I think it can be possible to give a little too much to "accuracy" and forget that what we're creating is "art". and that exceptions and artistic lisence can be just as important as spot-on accuracy.

I think it's looking great! 

Dave - maybe a railroad bridge that's out of use may get that rusty, but would a highway bridge? The worst condition back water highway bridge I have seen still had at least 50% of the paint still visible. Aluminum paint is used a lot in these situations. The city or county road department would be one this one to clean her up. Especially come near election time. Just my 2 cents.

Mike T.

I did some more work on the bridge, I'm not sure if I'm happy with it or not. I'm thinking about adding some color to it. I started adding green stuff. I still need bushes, weeds and a couple trees.

So there literaly rottening away, well now I know what a untakling care of boat looks like.

How did you do the water?

Here are some pictures from an actual tugboat graveyard.  The pictures were taken around NYC, where old boats tend to be run aground and abandoned in the various mud flats away from most people.  The old boats tend to be run aground at high tide, so the wreckers have easier access to the more valuable parts.  There are similar areas around the Great Lakes, and in all major coastal ports.  That isn't a highway, just a 2 lane access road for the wreckers.