The alter is finished. It actually only took two full days spread over a few to build, paint, and finish. It got a base coat of primer gray then sponged with dark green, brown, and dark purple.


Now that it's done, I have a couple more projects to clear up, then back to play time! I found this pic of a TV while doing some research awhile ago. I want to model in in 3D as an exercise to learn Cinema 4D. I like it's modeling tools better than Lightwave and think I may migrate over to it.

Here's some shots of the altar in progress. Avery provuided the upper part built from guitar boxes. I added to them a bit in the front, then built the base out of boxes gleaned from dumpster-diving around Burbank. Ah, the joys of dumpster-diving! It took the better part of an afternoon to build it. It needs to hold a lot of candles and dressing, so it required some structural bracing.
Then it got paper-mache-ed, using red roofing paper and flour paste. In the tradition of Italian, shell makers, I like to cook the flour paste in a ratio of one to four flour and water, by weight. This makes a gelatinous glue, and after soaking the paper in it thoroughly before applying, makes a wood-hard object.

The paper was laid down in large sheets, overlapping half by half, making a skin of about 6 layers. Not very thick, but still, hard as wood. After 3 to 4 days of drying, it'll be ready to paint.

Welcome to The Domain of the Wild Maus. This blog is a pictorial diary of projects from the past and in current production. I am a Production Designer and graphic artist in the entertainment industry in Los Angeles. I work in both live action and digital worlds, designing the overall look of digital videos, sets, props, fabricating them, and creating motion graphics and 3D animation. Visit my facebook page, Wild Maus, to view galleries of my work.

It’s great to work in both live action and on the computer: you experience the joys of live action building - splinters, solvents, glue-gun burns; and on the computer, the joys of spending endless hours in front of the screen until your butt turns to mush! The best of both worlds, truly.

Right now I’m building a live-action Mayan altar for friends Russell Welch and Avery Smith, who are out shooting a personal project, a short film. They love H. P. Lovecraft and their script, Invaders, is a Lovecraftian spin on the film Panic Room. That’s my take on it, anyway.

I’m building it at Travis’s, who with Victoria, host An Artist’s Pride. Check them out. They have some shots of some mechanical man-in-flight wings we recently built for a short film. Travis fabricates but usually works as a cam op and Victoria works in the art departments in television, but they love to fabricate, too, because building is fun!

Here’s a concept sketch by Avery and the guitar box structure it’ll be framed on.