Fancy Diapered Backgrounds Mistress Dairine mor o Uhigin

Fancy Diapered Backgrounds Mistress Dairine mor o’ Uhigin gaelstirler@gmail. com 6/6/15

A Diapered Background n is by definition n n a fanciful, geometrically divided, non-realistic treatment of the area behind the main subjects in a Medieval miniature.

Example of a Diapered Background Notice the way everything looks flat like pictures pasted to cardboard, placed in front of a curtain. The figures and gestures are very stylized. Outlines are heavy and shading is minimal.

Timeline of When It Was Used n n Diapering was rarely used before the 13 th century It became extremely popular in the 14 th century. By the middle of the 15 th century, the use of diapering was losing popularity and it was altogether abandoned by 1500. This was probably due to the increased emphasis on realism and depth of field in illumination.

Solid Geometric Diapering A solid color background with a design on top

Checky Diapering Checkerboard of gold and one or two colors, usually red and blue with white work on top.

Lozenge-shape divisions

Double line tiles Straight or on the diagonal with a plant or flower inside. Note the outline.

Tapestry Backgrounds n Not diapering per se but they always are found along-side diapered backgrounds.

Mosaics n In very fancy 15 th century manuscripts the arrangement of colors looks like mosaic tiles. n n n Tiny squares Elaborate designs Black lines reapplied after the colors and gold is applied.

How To Do Solid Diapering 1 n n n Paint a solid color in a medium tone. It can be any shade of red or blue It can be blotchy or streaky

How To Do Solid Diapering 2 n n Paint a grid in a dark tone of the same color. Use a ruler or make a template to measure the spaces. Use a liner brush to paint the lines. You can also use a ruling pen

How To Do Solid Diapering 3 n n n Paint a white dot in every other square on the first line Use a bright, a small short brush, to paint the dots Skip a line and repeat until done

How To Do Solid Diapering 4 n n n Put blue dots in the squares between the white dots in the skipped lines. The diagonals will be white, blue, white, blue. Then an empty diagonal

How To Do Solid Diapering 5 n n n Draw a small white square in each of the empty tiles. It is okay if they aren’t perfect. Make sure that you get them all.

How To Do Solid Diapering 6 n Connect the squares on the diagonal in white with thin lines.

More examples

Now Try it Yourself