This week I was put in the workshop to now paint the modelling. This was quite good as I actually got to work with some of the carpenters, some still are strange but others are actually really lovely.
The modelling was really interesting as it looked like stone but was just vackform. It was alrightinf painting theatre first few but because this show was so huge we had so many to paint, every time I thought I had finished they would bring more stuff over, it was just one of them weeks, so I was so tired by the end of it.
It was very interesting though as they built the whole set up in the workshop which was crazy to see. I couldn’t believe how huge it was
We had a brand new show this week, going out in 2 weeks time. Easy virtue. This show was an old rich house, so for the painters as pretty easy set to paint, and It’s mostly spot colours, and no distressing to make it look worn. As it was old we wanted to make it looked like it had been painted many times so it made it easier as we could just slap the paint on.
We were focusing on the floor at the moment, making it look like old wooden flooring and patio. This was a really useful exercise just to see the different stages and to see how much tiny things make a massive difference.
My 2nd week went so much better, I don’t want to quit I actually really love my job I was just being massively dramatic. I’ve started building a relationship with the scenic painters and there teaching me so much, they have also explained that the painters and the carpenters don’t get on as the carpenters work towards the deadline of getting the set out of the door, always meaning then the painters have to work late nights and weekends to get the set out. Which then made a little more sense to me why they were being rude, but I’ll still be nice to them. This week we were working on the show Road, which is going in the royal exchange. This show was really fun to do as it was 17 telegraph poles we had to rough down to make them look old, it was a really good exercise for me as it was just loads of layers built up to get the finish look, meaning if I made a mistake it wasent to bad as a anouther layer would be getting put over it. I also had a gold leaf sign to do which was really good for me to learn how to do, and it was also nice I was given to do it all, as it was my little project.
At the end of the week we had the referb of darren brown which was a nice little show to do, it was just making it look new again so lots of painting, filling and spotting. It was also interesting as the floor was needing re painting and originally the company wanted lights in the floor but there budget wasent big enough, so Toni, my boss came up with the idea to paint white lines in a certain way to still
Give the effect of lights, which worked really well. This painting was really satisfying to watch Toni and Maisie do as the lines had to be pin straight at a certain angle to get that effect of light.
This week I started my new placement at splinter scenery, this was a scenic painting job on theatre sets, which I got informed about by cordi as she said if I like festival stuff I should try theatre as well as I would like it. I had my interview the week before I it went really well, and the girls seemed really nice who I would be working with. My first week was abit crazy as they were mid way through getting a show out so it was hectic and I didn’t really know what I should be doing, but it was still good, I just had to throw myself into the work. I did struggle with the other department thought, the carpenters, as they just didn’t really want anything to do with me, I would say hi and get nothing back which I’ve been told before this industry can sometimes be like that, so that put a downer on my week, however I think I was also just naked as I hadn’t worked Monday – Friday 9-6 in a while, I’m used to working in the evenings so it was just a big shock to my system and with the travel. After my first week I wanted to quit but I think I was just exhausted and the situation with the lads made me feel pretty rubbish.
Everything was running perfect last week and this week I was quite stressed, as it’s all on me what’s happening. The heater place shut early for Christmas without saying, the marquee we had got one of the legs was broken and one of my friends let me down the day before helping to decorate! So I wasent very happy. However it just meant I had to start earlier and get it done, with 2 of my friends help it looked amazing. I couldn’t have asked for it to look better and I appreciated my friends that did turn up so much. Sometimes it’s scary your friends working for you because you want it to be perfect, but we had a briefing in the morning and I had done som demos so they had a really clear idea of how I wanted it.
I ended up contacting so many people and finally find a friend who had 2 spare heaters so we used them, and we had to make a make shift led for the tent, so everything was working good!
The event lasted 7pm-2pm and it was such a good night, the place was packed everyone dancing it was honestly such a good night, and the pub took the most money in the brewery’s region which I couldn’t be happier with it. Everyone love the decorations and said they didn’t feel like they were in a pub which is exactly what I was aiming for. There were many things I could have done better but I know for next time when we have another event in April!
This week, I had a project of organising an event for nye. The loctatipn was an old drinkers pub, but we wanted to create it a space for Younger people to come to. I had already worked here before in summer having an event but it wasent planned as well, meaning I learnt a lot and knew how to plan it better this time. I had been given a budget for decor, music, staff and rentals. My plan was to host it outside and create a space which didn’t feel like you were in a little pub in a village. I first had to get a liscense in so that we wouldn’t get shut down for music after a certain time, which was pretty easy to do. I got some friends to help me with the decorating sides, and had been in contact with heater rentals and marquee company as well. It was advertised all over social media with the djs also sharing the event so it was looking like it was gonna be a busy night.
This week I got asked if I wanted to do a fiberglass workshop at decordia. I had never really heared of fibreglass so I was really looking forward to be working with it. It was a really good skill to learn, and it was really nice to do it with about her person. After making our fibreglass docks cordi showed me how to paint it to look more like a rock using different senic techniques which was really interesting. We also experimented with resin and dies creating different colours which was cool to do to. At the end of this, cordi to speak to me private where she then offered me a job for summer, working festival and being paid for it which is amazing. She always gave me feedback back which is really useful for me.
This week was really full on, we were working long days and finishing late, but it was good to get straight in to it
We were working between the ice bar and the warm bar,
The ice bar was really exciting to be working in as the ice was being put in and built while we were working which was really interesting to see. However it was -12° so it was very difficult to work in, we just had to keep having breaks outside to warm up and kept having warm drinks.
But it was really fun doing the dressings on The inside of the bar, I really enjoyed how we were working, as we got a briefing at the start of the day, had a look at the drawings and plans and then were left to it. This made me feel really good as it showed she trusted my eye on working on her designs.
The warm bar was pretty hectic as there were many people working on it to, having lighting designers, electricians, carpet fitters, carpenters, and then people getting trained on the bar. It was a lot! And is trying to make everywhere look beautiful was really hard, especially when there wasn’t anyone in charge of what was going on so my boss ended up organising it, which isn’t her job, but purely just so we could get what we needed done. It was very interesting meeting new people but I also saw how people kept them selves to themselves and wouldn’t help if you asked which to me is very strange, but apparently that’s what it can be like in “this industry”. However I never want to be like that, and my boss just kept saying to me, kill time with kindness
Throughout this week everyone working for decordia would go for drinks and explore Edinburgh which I really enjoyed, it made me feel like these weren’t just colleges they are now my friends. They almost took me under the were wing, telling how the industry is, and what to look out for, also giving me loads of other contacts for new placements to which I found very kind. It was honestly one of the best weeks, I meant some really cool people and couldn’t believe what I was doing was someone’s jobs
My first week at decordia I was working on the workshop to prep for our trip to Edinburgh to create the polar ice bar. This was really nice as it allowed me to get to know the team and work with them before jumping straight in to working in a larger environment.
As we drove up to Edinburgh it was really nice to get to know jimmy, the carpenter and Phoebe, a scenic painter. As I don’t really know what I want to do after uni it was so nice to speak to people in the industry and learn more from them, and because there in the festival and event industry they are also interested in the same sort of stuff as me. It was just very refreshing speaking to like minded people like myself who just love doing the same stuff as yourself.
I was so excited to be going to Edinburgh to work and just get a feel of what it’s like “behind the scenes” Even just excited to be working away.
This week, I’ve finally had a meeting with the director to present the work I’ve been developing. The meeting went extremely well, he really like my ideas, which was incredibly rewarding to hear. It feels like a big step forward, as we can now move on to finalising the plans and begin reaching out to suppliers and companies, which is exciting.
As I’ve mentioned before, I think it’s so important to keep the heritage intact when designing, especially when working with a building that has such rich history. To help with this, I decided to take a day trip to Buxton, a town not far from Whaley Bridge, well known for its beautifully preserved historical architecture. This visit was so valuable, as I was able to see many examples of historical buildings that had been sensitively modified in a classy and respectful way, without losing touch with their original character.
The phots here have a really similar layout to what we are working with, the rounded window, the entrance, and the lobby.
