relief for wallpaper

[Cineruss]

As is the case with a lot of school theater productions, I find myself in a bind due to budget constraints on sets. They are using a stone wallpaper that is of course flat (attaching a picture. I really need to have some 3D feel to this and not just a flat surface. Does anyone know a method of creating this effect low cost so that lights will create some kind of a shadow but does not hide the colors in the image? That is about the only option I have now since the director wants the wallpaper more out of that is all they to work with situation. Any help greatly appreciated.

 

[Amiers]

2” blue foam Foam is the best option and easiest to work with. It won’t take long to do and obviously the most costly.

Now on to less costly but more work.

Stacked and glued pieces of cardboard cut and shaved with your favorite tool. Then shilacked with some VSSD, CBs version of paintable texture, painted accordingly.

Papier-mâché works semi well. Minus the
frailness you will need some sort of hardening to keep fingers from going through it.

All of these require lots of time and definitely some creativity and a fair amount of art skill.


Now as far as enhancing your digital image to make it pop comes down to a good projector a high res quality image and low ambient lighting. It will still look “flat” because you and the director knows it’s flat. There isn’t much you can do with that. Let the audience use their imagination, thats 95% of theater, and you will be fine.

 

[almorton]

We use plastic sheets which are moulded into the stones shape which are then painted by the scene painters, but the suppliers we use are uk based. Peter Evans Studios is one we use, there's probably something similar stateside, though. When painted by skilled painters they look extremely realistic.

 

[Van]

Vacuu-formed brick and rock panels are available at Rosebrand. I like Rosebrand but they are STUPID expensive on their vacuu-form products.

Applying thin slices of EPS <blue of pink foam> is a great way to create Field stone, in the attached all the wall faces are blue foam with VSSSD coating. You cannot use that in place of this wall paper but using it on top of this and trying to match colors would be nigh near impossible.

The only thing I can think of that might give you the appearance of texture on top of that paper would be.... Maybe Rosco Crystal gel? it would allow for adding some layering on top of the image and when it dries it dries clear. That with some oblique lighting my give you some visual texture, but that's just me spit-balling.

I knew a costumer who once said to a Director, "You want Cleavage Cast Cleavage!" I would add the codicil, "You want Texture, Build Texture" with todays audiences and lighting and directors, it is extreme difficult to fake texture, or wood with just paint techniques. Oh for the days of adding a drop shadow and making everyone a letter on a sign was 3D..

Show us what you do and how it turns out. I want to see your results.

 

[Crisp image]

Maybe the scenic painter can add shadows to the wallpaper. I have seen some great effects onstage where the flat looks 3D but in reality it is flat.

 

[JonCarter]

How far is the audience from the 'stone wall'? If over about 25-30 feet your wallpaper will look exactly like 3-D stonework. Save your time & $$$.

 

[macsound]

Home depot and others have all kinds of fake bricks ranging from lightweight brick veneer to stick on dimensional wallpaper to vacuform panels.

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