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This surprise birthday gift for the husband of
one of our clients is the largest and most detailed shadowbox
we have ever done. The interior is over 3 and a half inches deep,
includes over 150 pieces, and took over 50 hours to create. It
includes everything from his birth announcement to a penny for
each of the years he's been alive.
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 At
the initial meeting with the client, the overall goal of the project
was discussed and items were reviewed. Then all the materials were
gathered from the client and organized according to the designed
goals. The overall design scheme was a chronology of the husband's
first 40 years. |
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 It
all began with a "blank canvas," (in this case the laminated
black matboard background.) The initial design was a team effort,
getting rough placement ideas as well as estimating the final size
and configuration. |
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 Detail
of the initial layout process. |
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 One
of the special features of this shadowbox was the variety of 3-D
items included. You can see Steve begin to plan how the model Corvette
is going to work with the metal "Stingray" emblem and
the wood fraternity paddle. Various mounting and placement details
are developed and decided upon at this phase. |
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 Each
of the photographs and other flat items were mounted to an acid-free
board and cut by hand to ensure accuracy, squareness and a clean
edge. |
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 Once
the basic layout had been designed, the client came in to provide
us her feedback on placement and arrangement of the items. |
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 This
was an important step in the process. The client was very involved
in the design of the shadowbox, coming to the gallery numerous times
to provide us with additional material to help achieve the overall
goals. |
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 The
depth necessary to accomodate the height of the model Corvette as
well as the baby shoes required a custom manufactured frame. The
final shadowbox frame was actually two frames stacked atop of each
other and a milled wood filler to provide more stability. This,
as all of our custom frames was designed, manufactured and joined
completely inside our woodshop. |
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 The
production of the frame began with cutting and milling all the lumber. |
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 Nelson
milling the wood "filler" for supporting the two moulding
stack frame. |
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 It's
an old saying, but it nevers stops being true: "Measure Twice,
Cut Once." |
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 The
inner lining (or spacer) of the frame was created with the same
black material as the backer. Our production manager, Nelson, sanded
the edges smooth for a tight fit. The design included items to be
affixed to this inner lining. The spacer supports the glass above
the backer inside the frame. |
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 The
two frames and wood spacer were stacked together, glued and affixed
with brads. |
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 Meanwhile,
while the woodshop was busy creating the frame, each of the items
were affixed to the backer at varying heights. Cliff used a custom
made trammel T-square to ensure that each piece was square as well
as level. |
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 The
height of each piece was created by stacking various numbers of
individual pieces of gator board behind the piece. |
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 Here,
the glass has been inserted into the frame and the inner lining
is in place. The inner lining was home to a few items, including
the model Corvette and a stopwatch and whistle. |
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 The
assembly of the backer and memorobeilia was complete. We rejoiced. |
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 The
joined frame was placed over the backer. |
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 The
backer was affixed inside the frame to encapsulate the backer. |
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 Final
assembly and detailing the backer. |
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| The
final piece measured over 54" wide by 38" tall. |
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