1:48 Poster pillar Germany-Italy

Poster column 1:48 from Black Dog

A cylindrical column with posters pasted on it was typical equipment of European streets. This accessory brings it into 1:48 scale and, according to the name, carries German and Italian motifs, so it fits the setting of both countries. It serves as a filler and a landmark in a scene, not as a model built on its own.

Why the column benefits a scene

A diorama usually lacks something to catch the eye in the place where the main action is not going on. A vertical element at the curb breaks the horizontal line of the pavement, gives the composition height and above all carries text, so the viewer stops at it and starts reading. At the same time it works as a screen behind which the edge of the base or an unfinished corner of a building can be hidden.

Painting and seating

Columns were painted in a darker color and the paper on them faded and tore quickly. So sand the edges of the posters lightly, to keep them from looking sharply cut, and apply splashes of mud from passing vehicles to the lower part. Sink the foot of the column into the layer of the street surface so that it does not look as if it had been set on the pavement from above. A few small things that liven the street up work well around the foot: a trodden cigarette end, a scrap of paper torn off a poster or a puddle after rain. It is precisely such details at the foot that catch the viewer before the column itself does.

Who it is for

• creators of city dioramas from the European theater
• modelers whose scene lacks a vertical accent
• collectors of display cases where a vehicle stands with no surroundings
• those interested in period graphics and lettering in a scene