Cameo Components

Synergy!  This post is about gathering together a few ideas that seem to have converged into my mind all at once.  Pull the thread with me:

http://ghosttownmodels.blogspot.com/2020/05/a-small-block-of-buildings.html

Friendly acquaintance and fellow blogger Darryl Huffman's post really unlocked something in my head that allowed divergent streams to come together.  Recently Darryl has been making these little gems; tiny little scenes on a space the size of a business card.  In the post linked above he combined them into a scene along with a section of road between them.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MountainGoatModels?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=819061195

I've known Greg Baker, aka Mountain Goat Greg, since the early days of the Big Blue train forum, back when it was 'The Gauge', I think.  Greg has an Etsy store in which he sells itty bitty HO scale dioramas that fit in a 2" display cube.  Recently I was searching Etsy for a related item when I rediscovered Greg's modeling.

The video above is interesting on its own as a static grass tutorial, but for me it has taken on a value beyond simple instruction.  Having just built my own static grass applicator (StaticGrassOne) I revisited Martin's excellent video.  Can you guess what stuck with me about his method?  I'll tell you - he made little test squares for varying textures.

Is it clicking yet?

Google defines cameo as:

1. a piece of jewelry, typically oval in shape, consisting of a portrait in profile carved in relief on a background of a different color.
2. a short descriptive literary sketch which neatly encapsulates someone or something.

   "cameos of street life"

I'm going to create cameo components - little dioramas that can be placed adjacent to one another to form a larger scene.  These cameos can stand on their own as expressions of ideas, or as combined they can tell a story.  Functionally they will serve as test beds for scenic techniques, but also places to display models that may not have a place on the current Pine Branch Park railroad. 

Take for example this tower I scratchbuilt a few years back:

A bit of ply, a layer of foam, and rudimentary scenery, yet it is a complete statement about the structure and its location within the bounds of the diorama.  The sidewalk implies it is next to a road, and knowing it is a grade crossing tower implies it is next to railroad track(s).  The sidewalk may also imply an urban or suburban environment, but that context could be changed based on the adjacent cameo components.  (By the way, the static grass on this diorama is from a sheet of premade grass texture, cut to fit).

A few decisions will have to be made regarding the thickness of the base and general dimensions in order to ensure compatibility.  However, once that is set I anticipate this could be the start of something really exciting and fun.  More about the first foray into this format in future posts.