1:35 Pramice

A horizontal line on the bank

A flat boat lies low and draws a long horizontal line across a scene, which is exactly the opposite effect from buildings and crates. That is precisely why it is worth using where the composition is too fragmented: a single drawn-out line leads the gaze from left to right and the scene settles down. Pulled half up onto the bank it also divides the base into two bands, a watery one and a dry one, and the viewer accepts this boundary as a natural edge of the action.

A ferry as a subject

Flat-bottomed boats served to carry people, livestock and loads where there was no bridge, and in a time when bridges were being destroyed they became the quickest solution. A scene with a punt therefore tells of a crossing, of waiting and of delay. Figures with a pole, a little pile of baggage on the bottom and ruts worn down to the bank turn a static scene into a story. A boat full of cargo has a different effect from an empty one still waiting, and both are legitimate choices.

Wood, sheet metal and water

The package is made up of laser cut wooden parts and a sheet metal fret to go with them. The metal section will serve for the fittings and strips that would come out too massive in wood. The bottom of the boat is best painted and dirtied before the sides are closed over it, because afterwards it is hard to get inside. Sinking it into model water requires that the hull be closed beforehand and the absorbent wood sealed with varnish, otherwise the resin wicks into the texture and the edge darkens. A pole leaning against the side then completes the sense that the craft is waiting to push off from the bank. It also pays to darken the joints between the boards of the bottom, where water would seep through under way.