Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Paint for Elephants

Pulling another project from the archives for this post. It's downtime for prop projects at the moment.

So with the recent release of Water for Elephants -a film I would have loved to work on- and the upcoming reopening of Spiderman:  Turn off the Dark, reworked by Phil McKinley -a director I loved working with- here's 'Paint for Elephants'. Or, 'How Metallic Paint is Awesome'.

While working on Creme de Coco I faced the oh-so-common problem of needing set dressing that would appear high-end and period, but working on a small budget. Metallic paint helped give a uniform appearance to the objects and mask imperfections.

Step one: Hunt for the object. Clean everything.
By the way - know how the objects are being used. I wouldn't advise spray painting silverware people will be eating from.


Step Two: Paint!
This may also require a layer of Gesso. I like the Bob Ross brand (available at Michael's).



Step Three: Age/Distress
The addition of a thinned black wash layer added character to many of the objects. Design Master's Glossy Wood Tone is also fabulous for a warm glow.



But don't paint the elephant's tusks!
An elephant also found its way onto the set. Originally this little fella was red. Phil also directed for Barnum and Bailey - and I was informed it's very bad luck to re-paint the tusks on an elephant. So the tusks were carefully taped off.


Fabric paint can also do wonders!
The sofa for this show was rescued from a DAV. The pattern on the couch was originally brown/green. Obviously, follow the instructions and consult the costume designer prior to painting.

Before

After

Next post - blood packs!

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