How to Paint Backdrops
A backdrop is a painted curtain placed on a stage to suggest or extend the visible scene. Backdrops are often painted to suggest a particular setting important in the scene. A backdrop may picture the dunes of Arabia or the canals of Venice. Some backdrops are intentionally vague images of distant mountains or oceans used to suggest a type of location rather than a specific place. Scenery artists produce and paint backdrops for productions.
Things You'll Need
- Muslin or canvas
- Plastic sheeting
- Bogus paper
- Staple gun
- Scene paints
- Water
- Flame retardant paint additive
- Paint brushes/rollers
- Sample of scene with grid overlay
- Chalk line
- Pencil
- Carpenter's square
Instructions
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1
Position the muslin or canvas on a vertical paint frame. This is a large frame that will allow you to staple the fabric to the wooden frame so the scene can be painted vertically. If your work space is too small or doesn't have a paint frame, you can use the floor as a work table.
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2
Place plastic sheeting on the floor so it's larger than the fabric. Cover the plastic sheeting in bogus paper, which is an unbleached absorbent paper used for scene painting. Stretch and staple the fabric to the floor sufficiently that the fabric is taut enough to paint. You'll need to remove the staples once the backdrop is finished and dried, so be careful with your staple placement and quantity.
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3
Thin the white scene paint, using water, to the consistency of skim milk. Mix in a flame-retardant paint additive. Apply the mixture to the fabric. Use a wide chip (inexpensive) brush and apply the mixture in crossing brush strokes. Allow the mixture to dry completely before drawing on the fabric.
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Snap a chalk line across the bottom. This will be the straight base line of the fabric. Make two marks on this line 4 feet apart. Use a carpenter's square perpendicular to the line at one mark. Measure 3 feet up the square and mark. Use the second mark on the chalk line and measure 5 feet. Bring the 3 foot carpenter's square mark and the 5 foot mark together. When they align, the carpenter's square is at true perpendicular. Draw a line and then use this line to snap a vertical chalk line. Mark off and snap a grid that matches a grid on the original artwork.
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5
Transfer the image from the original drawing to the fabric by drawing the detail inside each grid box from the original to the large scale. Once the drawing is scaled to the large size, paint the scene starting from the background and working to the foreground. Replicate the appearance of the artist's scene as carefully as you can to produce the effect that's been selected for the production.
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Tips & Warnings
Use scene paints as they're designed to be thinned without losing of their bonding agents. House paints and other non-scene paints may crack or lose cohesion when the curtain is mounted.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit painting image by Dmitri MIkitenko from Fotolia.com
