Ship Dioramas

The author of Ship Models from Kits “has brought nautical scenes to life in his latest book” (Daily Record). This book is about the art of displaying waterline models. By their very nature, ship models that do not show the full hull and are not mounted on an artificial stand cry out for a realistic setting. At its most basic this can be just a representation of the sea itself, but to give the model a context to tell some sort of story is far more challenging. In a diorama, the composition is a vital element and this book devotes much of its space to what works and what does not—and illustrates with photographic examples why the best maritime dioramas have visual power and how to achieve that impact. Individual chapters explore themes like having small craft in attendance on the main subject, multiple-model scenarios, dockyards and naval bases, and the difficulties of replicating naval combat realistically. It also looks at both extremes of modelmaking ambition: the small single-ship exposition and the largest, most ambitious projects of the kind meant for museum display. The book concludes with some of the most advanced concepts of how to create drama and the illusion of movement, and how to manipulate perspective. David Griffith’s book is “compelling and inspiring . . . littered with practical examples of work in progress, simple dioramas to the most complex . . . I highly recommend it to all ship modellers without hesitation” (Scale Modelling Now).