Small Japanese shops (1/300)

[Viator]

I was absent here for nearly two months, because I was (and still I am) focused on another activities, involving writing of few decades of short stories - a kind of a prozaic workshop) but I haven't fully neglected my paper modelling.

First, in the meantime I made many cars, trucks and buses (and still I need more of them, so this is far from being completed).

Second, I prepared few more buildings to be made, including the castle, which will be the next big challenge for me. I finished only few small shops more (ad #101) and made one tall apartment building, which is for the moment the second tallest building in Nekomura (#102).

Third, finally I have an idea how to add some more poses to the set of twelve basic plastic figures available on the market. I decided to show the historical reenactment event at the feet of the castle, using Baccus 6mm metal gaming samurai & ashigaru figures, which perfectly fit the 1/300 scale. I purchased them in UK and I have just started painting the first batch. I decided to make few units from the first siege of Osaka in 1614 and the first two colors are the ashigaru yari bearers with white and black stripped sashimono (personal banners) of Date clan and the famous "red devils" samurai unit of Ii Naotaka, created by his father Ii Naomasa. They are not a paper figures but I hope they will create a good scenery for the castle itself.

[Don Boose]

Andrew -

I like your settings for display of your samutai and ashigaru (one of our close friends some 30 years ago was a U.S. Army colonel who was descended from Date Masamune).

The traffic jam reminds me of traveling between Fussa and Tokyo on Route 4 of the elevated Shuto Kōsoku-dōro.

Don

[Viator]

Dear Don, you are a treasure trove of memories. Thank you for the knowledge you share!

[Viator]

An addition for the previous post, the last few of little shops (ad #101)

[Don Boose]

Wonderful little shops!

小さなお店?

Don

[Viator]

I think so.

[Don Boose]

Andrew -

I noticed some older styles of Japanese structures in your Senkoku-jidai dioramas.

Have you built other such structures? I am eagerly awaiting the start of my class on Japanese architecture and have been doing preliminary reading about the Heian-era shinden and Muromachi Shoin styles of houses. I anticipate doing a little paper modeling of Japanese structures during the class (probably the simpler Kanon models).

Don

[Erik Zwaan]

Simply a work of art, on such a small scale. I wonder if we have Japanese members on this site, and what they think of your excellent work (and the amazing knowledge of Don).

Erik

[Viator]

Thank you both!
Don, I see I must study some more architecture as well. The names of the styles doesn't sound familiar to me... But it will be a pleasure and I will do some research and return with the results obviously!
In the background for my soldiers I used the just ready models, the back side of a kabuki-za and few village houses. But I want to make a small or medium size castle donjon with few more historical buildings around, as well as one or two more shrines/temples, so more wooden structures are scheduled to be done.
I wonder too if I can show one such structure uncladded - maybe after the fire or during the erection on site? See the image for reference. But if so, perhaps I will use really wooden sticks to make it. Anyway, it will be a great fun.

[Viator]

I am still involved in few other projects, regarding both paper modelling as well as another activities, mostly writing, however I didn't fully neglect Nekomura project. In the meantime I painted more tiny soldiers, made much more cars and trucks with containers, and few more buildings, mostly twelfth century structures.

*

The Akabanedai Danchi Building No. 44, one of the three similar star-shaped multi-flats, built 1962 (Showa 37) and being renovated just now. I found the pdf model in the Internet, scaled it down and slightly modified, improving the "empty" top of roof (part "A" on the printed sheet) according to the aerial view (copied from the Google Maps terrain layer aerial view and pasted into the same sheet) but leaving the simplified balconies as they are, plus making the walls white instead of an original brownish-yellow plaster.
(#103)