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Recreating a Renaissance Backdrop: My St. Eligius Experience

Posted by Emeline la Chauciere on
My display set up at the St. Eligius Arts and Sciences Competition

Yesterday I had the joy of competing in the Artisan Level Challenge at St. Eligius, hosted by the Barony of Dragonship Haven– and what an extraordinary day it was! I’m thrilled (and still a bit stunned) to share that I won my division and received the Populace Choice Award.

This project has been one of the most invigorating and artistically satisfying things I’ve worked on in the SCA: a recreation of a 16th-century Italian theatrical backdrop, created using historically documented scenic-art processes. As someone who is both a practicing scenic designer and professor in the modern world, and an artisan in the Society, I loved the way this project let my two creative lives entwine.

Serlio’s Comic Scene from the stage from his book Architettura (Book II, 1545)

The Project: Painting the Renaissance Stage

My entry explored the techniques described by Italian artists, critics, architects, and stage designers such as Serlio, Vasari, Sabbatini, and Cennini. These men left behind rich written accounts of how early painted scenery was constructed, transferred, and brought to life–  everything from making brushes to scaling drawings to mixing pigments.

For St. Eligius, I created:

  • Handmade squirrel-hair and hog hair brushes, bound and trimmed following period descriptions from Cenini.
  • A set of handmade distemper paints, mixed from pigments and animal-glue size pulled from Cenini and Vasari.
  • A gridded cartoon of Serlio’s comic scene, scaled, in perspective pricked, and pounced using the spolvero transfer method detailed by Vasari and Sabbatini.
  • A pounced backdrop, executed on a sized linen canvas using historical handmade tools like a flogger and charcoal pounce and sized with hide glue in accordance with Sabatini.

The whole experience felt like stepping directly into a Renaissance workshop, following the same steps a scenic painter might have used for the courts of Ferrara, Florence, Venice or Urbino.

Process Gallery

The squrrel hair is bound with a linen thread and then pulled through a softened feather quill which acts as a ferule. The ferule is secured with hide glue. Cenini provides detailed descriptions of this in his work, “Il Libro dell’Arte”.
Making the flogger. The flogger is made from strips of linen stiched together with linen thread and then secured on the handle with hide glue. This tool will be used to flog off extra charcoal on the drop after cartooning.
Grinding pigment and calcium carbonate (chalk) to create the components for distemper paint. The paint recipes come from both the work of Cenini and Vasari.
I stretched out my linen canvas for the backdrop on the stage floor at my univeristy to get a sense of size and scale. I could then start piecing together the pieces of my paper for my cartoon. I worked with a theatrical supplier, Rosebrand to source a historical Italian linen canvas.
Laying out the vanishing point on my scale grid on my cartoon. The method of gridding and cartooning is described in detail by Vasari in his work, “Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects”.
Using the linen pounce bag I made to pounce the cartoon. Every line of the cartoon was carefully pricked with holes using a tracing wheel and a needle tool. This method of pricking and pouncing is called the Spolvero method and is out lined by Vasari in his book.
After removing the cartoon from on top of the drop, you have an outline drawing created with tiny charcoal dots. Often extra charcoal gets through the cartoon. This is where you use a flogger to carefully remove the extra charcoal.
Detail of my presentation showing my homemade brushes and paint.

Preparing for the Event

One of the great joys of this project was the research. As part of my professional life, I regularly teach scenic painting and I had previously taught a course on Italian Renaissance image transfer methods for an SCA Schola, so I already had some familiarity with the vocabulary and manuscripts. This project let me go deeper, reading primary accounts of early audiences gasping at the new perspective scenery, studying Vasari’s technical notes, and revisiting Serlio’s diagrams with new eyes.

There were some mishaps along the way. I am learning that each pigment reacts differently to my paint recipe; I am perfecting my process for sizing the linen canvas of the backdrop.  I also had a hilarious domestic moment during prep: one evening Phelippe casually reached into what he thought was just another Amazon delivery… only to pull out a fistful of squirrel tails destined to become “period-appropriate” brush bristles. He has recovered (mostly).

Completed pounced drop ready for paint. Finished size is about 10 foot by 10 foot.
A closer look at the drop. Here you can see the dotted charcoal transfer lines from my cartoon.

The Day of St. Eligius

The event atmosphere was wonderful; warm, collegial, and curious. I loved talking with judges and visitors about early theater technology, the magic of perspective painting, and the tactile satisfaction of grinding pigment, stretching linen, and pouncing a cartoon by hand.

One of the highlights for me was seeing how engaged the Populace was. Folks seemed genuinely excited that theatrical arts, especially behind-the-scenes stagecraft, have such deep medieval and Renaissance roots. Several people told me they’d never thought about the process behind painted scenery before, which felt like a win in itself. Seeing folks be genuinely excited about, “Never seeing anything like this at and A&S competition” was so exciting!

My judges were thoughtful and I loved speaking with them and reading their feedback. Being in the room with so many amazing artists was awe inspiring. To be honored with Artisan Level Champion and Populace Choice was the sweetest possible surprise. Furthermore, I was able to choose from the most beautiful prizes. I chose this gorgeous kidney pouch by THL Svanr Hroffson and this breathtaking Viking wire-wrapped necklace by Baronessa Catalina de Valencia. Additionally, her excellency of Dragonship Haven gave me a beautiful self-care package with a mug, tea, cozy socks, and all kinds of goodies.

Gorgeous prizes I received for winning the competitions

Looking Ahead

This project has inspired me to keep going. Next steps I’m considering:

  • Expanding this backdrop into dimensional wing pieces.
  • Experimenting with three-dimensional relief carving added to scenic flats.
  • Attempting more period pigment recipes using historically documented materials.
  • Diving deeper into Sabbatini’s stage machinery diagrams to build a working miniature.

And of course… PAINTING THIS BACKDROP FOR THE UPCOMING VENETIAN EVENT IN SETTMOUR SWAMP!

I am so very grateful for the entire experience. I’m grateful: to the event stewards, the judges, my fellow artisans, and everyone who stopped by to chat, ask questions, or simply share excitement for this beautiful blend of theater and history. I am also tremendously grateful to my husband Phelippe for all his help along the way, and to Vivian who is the most supportive Laurel ever!

Photo of me presenting taken by my Laurel Vivian de Dunbar.
Photo of me recieving the Populace Choice award in court taken by my Laurel Vivian de Dunbar.

St. Eligius uses a series of “12 Questions” to help entrants with their documentation. Here is a link to view my document: Emeline’s 12 Questions

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