Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-01-11
THEATRICAL SCENERY.
ON THE PAINT BRIDGE OF ONE OF
THE NEW YORK TEEATERs.
An Important Feature of stage-Craft-
How Scenes Are Painied-What
Artists Can Earn.

of space above the stage, writes OI@ce
Conway in the New York Star. The scenic
painter was at work, and the platform
upon which he stood and changed blank
canvas into speaking pictures swung and
creaked above the tops of the scenery.
How reached that platform, after climb
ing up ladders and walking along an APP
parently perilous way, would almost
frighten me, even now, to describe.
Finally, however, reached the artist, and
made known my Grand.
"Gige you some points about scene
painting to tell the readers of the Starr"
he repeated after me. Certainly l will,
and gladly; be seated, and tell me where
to begin.
"At the beginning" l answered, and
with brush in hand, he commenced:
"To-day when a manager has decided
upon play and It's production, the first
person to whom he has recourse is his
scenic artist. If he is wise in his gener-
alton he holds consultation with him long
before any announcement of the play is
made public, and together they advise
upon the character Of the play to be pre-
scented, the location of the scene in which
the action is supposed to take place, the
period In which the events happen, the
hour of the day or night at which they
occur, and the time and expense that will
probably be required to do Justice to the
Undertaking.
''Most scenic artists have a fine pictorial
library, and from these pictures, in the
r..
time and money, | find landscapes, exter-
Tors and interiors that be6t the play and
period, and submit them to the approval of
the manager. When together We decide
upon such as are most suitable. | have
model of the scene made to a scale, and
color the miniature model to an exact fac
simile that the large scene will present
when finished. The dimensions being
given to the stage carpenter, he purchases
the lumber and other material and con-
structs the scene to the size require, and
when completed places the scene in this
paint frame, which is, you see, mechani-
cal Continuance constructed usually against
the rear or side wall of the theater, and
suspended by ropes leading to windlass in
the fly gallery"
"See, here is the fly gallery" he con-
tinued, indicating a wooden platform
elevated considerably above the stage on
either side of it, ''and from this are worked
the sky borders and the ceilings used in
play" | observed that the paint frames,
one Of which was suspended on each side
of us, could be raised or lowered, as the
artist required to suit his convenience as
his work advanced.
"This floor upon which we stand is a
platform, which is termed paint bridge
and it is one of the most commodious [
have ever seen, having all the space and
conveniences needed to accommodate the
paraphernalia used in the execution of the
work. Standing upon this we paint the
scenes hanging in the paint frames.
"The canvas you see is a strong, heavy
material, called Russian linen, and before
painting is begun upon it my assistant
carefully and thoroughly vets it all over
with a size composed of whiting, glue,
alum and water This process is called
printing. When this is done sketch in
the outlines of my scene, which may be
either landscape, architectural, exterior or
interior, and it is ready for the colors to be
applied" -
/ inquired.
eyes" he replied. "Many people who
are not familiar with scene painting ask
me if it isn't done in oil. Now, on the
contrary, not a drop of oil is used; in the
first place, it would increase the weight of
the scenes and make them more difficult to
handle, and, moreover, greatly increase
the danger in case of fire, against which
in these days we take every precaution in
theaters."
"Now let me show you my palette" |
started, but he did not open his mouth fur
ther than to utter the remark, and pointed
instead TO solidly-built table, about FIVE
or six feet long, mounted on casters which
allowed it to be moved to any part of the
bridge most convenient TO his work. l
noticed it was fitted with compartments to
contain the necessary colors, and that the
brushes lying near were of all sizes, fat
and round, varying from fine to others Of
several inches in width.
'NNhat kind of colers are these you
use p 1 asked, pointing to the little
mounds of paints that occupied the d.
visions of the palette table.
"They are powdered colors Of the best
quality, and mixed with glue and water"
he answered, taking the brush he held in
his hand, deity applying it to the canvas
in front of us. He worked rapidly and
surprised me by the handsome and strik-
ing effects he produced with few quick
but well-considered strokes Experience,
Judgment and skill were needed, l saw, in
placing the colors upon the canvas as, be-
ing applied wet, they looked several shades
darker than they appeared on the adjacent
work, which had dried.
i l..
the conversation, saying snow, when l
have finished the painting Of this scene it
will be lowered in the paint frame to the
stage, where the carpenter again takes it
in hand, fastens it together, and sets it up
to be inspected and improved by the man.
agement."
How long an apprenticeship do you
think it would require" | asked, ito be-
come scenic artist?'
@Ah," TIE artist replied, "that would
depend largely upon the individual him
self and the amount of talent and industry
he brought to bear upon his work, COM
bined with numerous other qualities that
must be contributed to the composition of
a successful scenic artist. He must have
versatility, as the demands of his position
will require him to produce landscape,
marine, architectural and pastoral views
with equal facility and skill. He should
have Ideally and Imagination to assist him
in conoeiving and contributing to the in
satiable demand for something new and
beautiful. He needs also practical attri-
butes to assist him in approaching the
tastes and requirements Of an exacting
public in giving realism to the stage
picture. He must bear in mind the spare
in which his scenic effects are to be pro-
duced, and have adaptability in making
his conception applicable to his limits, and
so arrange the picture that it viii present
a striking tableaux from the stalls to the
gallery An artist realizes how important
to the success of play it often is that the
impression created by the scene on the
rise of the curtain should favorable one,