1:35 Kaplička sloupovitá

A sign by the road

Shrines on a pillar stood at crossroads, by small bridges and on the boundaries of plots all over Central Europe, and they often survived both wars only because they were in nobody's way. On a diorama they fill a special role: they give the place a name and at the same time a sense of scale, because the viewer estimates their size without thinking. Four parts of polyurethane resin.

Stone and plaster are not the same thing

The shaft tends to be of stone, the head plastered and whitewashed. Create the difference before painting: bring out the stone with irregular strokes of the point of a knife across the surface and with light tapping, and refine the plaster instead with a thin coat of acrylic putty spread with a damp sponge. A coat of lime is made with a white shade applied with a stippled brush, so that the base shows through in the hollows.

Aging that follows the water

All the age on a structure like this is directed by the rain. Run the vertical traces from the top down and only from the places where there is an edge or a cornice. Under it a darker deposit clings, while on the edge the rainwater washes the surface light. Fallen plaster is made by pressing a piece of foam into the white coat while it is still wet and pulling the paint away; the resulting area has an irregular edge of the kind that scraping never gives. A green tinge of moss belongs only on the north side and at the foot.

Setting it into the terrain

A shrine never stands alone: a trodden path, a crooked little fence or a few stones belong with it. Sinking the foot into the grass is more important than the best painting of the shaft.