1:35 Sada kufrů

Luggage as the quickest way to add people

A pile of suitcases set on a platform tells the viewer that civilians pass this way before he has managed to find the first figure. Luggage is an object that does not move on its own, so its presence always means somebody who brought it. A suitcase set down by a wall speaks of waiting, a suitcase in the middle of the road of haste, and a tall pile tied with rope of a whole household moving out.

The set numbers twelve resin castings and a small decal sheet, with which labels and stickers are transferred onto the luggage. With suitcases in particular this matters, because luggage with nothing stuck on it looks like an indeterminate block, whereas a label on the lid instantly gives it a purpose and an age.

Arrangements that make sense

• a pile tied up at the roadside as evidence of leaving home
• two or three pieces side by side beside a station bench
• a single suitcase set on the fender of a staff car
• an opened and emptied piece as a trace of a search

The finish will take a variety unthinkable with military objects. Brown, dark green and burgundy leather side by side will do a pile good, and a gloss coat on some pieces will liven it up further. The fittings and buckles need only be suggested with a thin dark line. The sizes are chosen for 1:35 scale. Build the pile from the bottom up, starting with the largest pieces, and leave the gaps between them irregular, so that the arrangement does not look like a carefully squared stack of goods.