Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1936-10-11
By G. II. Dacy.


l. mime, as we'll as education by
exhibits. will benefit mutually
- from the inventive ingenuity
OF a quartet Of specialists OF the
United States Bureau Of Public Roads,
all residents Of the District, who have
revolutionized diorama production. A
diorama Is best defined as the dra-
matization Of a historical event by q
silent yet spectacular pageant or SIM
liar display, in which small-scale
models of men, animals, machines
whatnot-are the actors. But one
spectacle can be represented per di-
Drama so that sometimes series Of
these brilliantly painted, brightly
illuminated exhibits is necessary to
consummate the intended educational
message.
For example, the life of George
Washington might appropriately be
portrayed in a series Of, say, 10 do
Tamas.
Diorama production first germinat-
ed in France some three-score years
ago; the British soon copied the
French idea. Both French and British
museums have long used dioramas for
visual educational purposes; elaborate
exhibits of scientific attainmentS, his
torical happenings and both the tri-
jumps and defeats of warfare have
been thus illustrated.
Mr.. A. C. Rose, who designs and
directs the educational exhibits made
and displayed throughout the United
States by the Bureau of Public Roads,
has thoroughly tested out the methods
of diorama making practiced by pro-
fessionas both in this country and
abroad. Aided by his talented assist
ants, Henry w. Hendley, artist and
sculptor; Karl Rakeman, artist, and
C. H. Frey, mechanical specialist, Mr..
Rose has completed and exhibited
various dioramaS that positively
sparkled with the realism and the
stories which they told in pantomime.
However. the best of those productions
had faults and flaws. Like all other
dioramas made according to the ira
ditional prescriptions, they showed de-
fects and distortions. Artists and ex-
hibitors, as well as scientists every
where, had come to accept such in
side shortcomings of the diorama as
unavoidable.
ENGINEERING, as you probably
know, is a science Of precision.
Approximately right" does not mean
much in the lexicon Of the engineer.
A mathematical formula or its practi-
cal application is either right or wrong,
according to his training. He refuses
to countenance hair-splitting: he car
ries decimals out to four or five places
instead Of using the plus sign. That
is why our lengthy bridges and our
altitudinous skyscrapers are safe, and
long Withstand the Bullets of wind,
weather, wear and tear. That in
grown ideal of the trained engineer
to make everything right is what
causes the Rose, ct al, force to resort
to study and experimentation to rid
diorama making of its latent defects.
In short, the foregoing is nothing
more than Introductory OF a new
method Of diorama production which
revolutionizes the art, ties together all
the former loose ends, and makes this
style of exhibit scrutiny-proof. The
old formula for q diorama was a semi
circular painted background, with the
depth of the exhibit approximately
one-half as large in inches, feet or
even yards, as its width. That ratio
was followed in order to develop the
proper perspective, although the point
Of view Of the spectators was not con-
trolled. The models, either still fig
ures or those animated by the use of
endless belts and electrical control,
were made Of clay, plaster or metal.
and usually were both fragile and
costly. The illumination of the do
ramas was not standardized accord
ing to the class of exhibit. As re-
suit of the half-circle painted back
ground, distortion almost invariably
was observable at the three vanishing
points of the painting. 1t was impos-
nble for artists to eliminate that de-
feet. Worst of all, it was perceptible
to the spectator, and frequently
spoiled the entire influence of the
exhibit, so far as he individually was
concerned.
Criticism is just so much converse
sion, unless the critic can offer con-
crete and sensible suggestions for i'm
provements. The local public roads
exhibitors have not only done this,
they have demonstrated the verify of
their contentious by producing re-
vised dioramas which are superlative-
" excellent and qualified to Withstand
every and any tests for accuracy.
They have substituted straight
faced painted background for the
previous moon-shape layout, have re-
duced the depth of each exhibit to
o standard of inches, have controlled
the point of view, have made the ex-
hibits under the same quality light as
that used in their display, have faced
the dioramas with fiaring hoods
somewhat similar to the entrance Of
. highway or railroad tunnel, and
have stabilized artificial illumination
In the upper-corner exposures of those
shields. This arrangement rid the
dioramas Of distortion. A perfect pic
torial representation of the scene or
activity is visible frc.- .1;ll the angles
at which the spectators can view the
exhibit. The realistic qualities of the
dioramas are intensified by the aboh-
ton of the former defects. The mod
els are now carved artistically from
password, which is soft and easily
workable. yet does not spit as readily
rs white pine. These lilliputian fig
ureS OF wood are less fragile and more
durable than the clay and plaster ones
Of yore.
THE custom has been to make mod
- els in three dimensions. Messrs.
EIendley and Rakeman have improved
On that system by Stimulating the
practices Of the sculptor, who creates
lifelike figures in bas-relief. The new
models are about one-quarter Of an
Inch deep, and hence different from
ordinary cutouts. Artistic skill has