Jean Diorama – The fantasy of everyday life

Who is Jean Diorama?

Jean – Bernard André a.k.a. JBA Diorama, Jean Diorama and Nicolas Cabaret is modeler from France, 45 y.o., Teacher in Programming, by profession

The Passion Behind the Models…

Hello Jean-Bernard, it’s a pleasure for me to have this conversation with you! I won’t ask when you started modeling, as you’ve shared a lot about your journey since 1979 on your blog. But can you remember what led you to those Airfix figures back in 1979?

I enjoyed playing with those soft plastic Atlantic toy soldiers, you know? Then I realized I wanted something more “permanent” than just having them scattered around my rooms. I loved the intricate details (at least to me) of those toys. I wanted to have objects that meant something about my life on my shelves.

Since we’re at the beginning, why do you use different artistic names? Why did you create ‘Nicolas Cabaret’? Will there be any new names in the future?

Haha! Two reasons for Nico – first I wanted to start again from nothing and get real constructive comments again. And then I wanted to feel free to put out harsh stuff. But I don’t care for either now so Nico I might resuscitate again but not now .. yeah I might use a third name one day though for different projects and ideas.

When I look over your dioramas, I get the feeling that, back in 1992, you were more focused on sci-fi landscapes from other planets, like in Orange 0 and Helium. There don’t seem to be as many water-based dioramas. Was that a deliberate choice?

Well there always were waters in my dioramas since about 1983.. now no more than it used to. Orange 0 is a sort of mix of scenes from Tarkovski’s Stalker and Sharuna Bartas’ 3 days movie. The girl was modeled after Russian actress Katerina Golubeva. That’s my own planet, the one I built because I watched movies, love some artists lived and lived different lives again.. everything melted and built that planet. Helium is me being very happy 🙂

Now that you mention it, I realize that Orange 0 and Helium are actually dioramas with water. At first glance, I saw them as desert scenes, but there’s a thin layer of water on them… I guess I need glasses! 🙂 You often depict Russian subjects in your dioramas. Do you have any Russian heritage? The way you represent it feels very authentic.

When I was about 12, my Godfather brought back from the USSR the Russian legends as illustrated by Bilibin. Then my grandmother was a harsh anti communist and thought the Russians were the devil – and I always had some sympathies for the devil. Then I was brought in an era when everybody thought it would vanish in a Nuclear Holocaust because of the Russians etc. Also, about Russia I meant this was sort of a common element throughout my life, but I really started loving the thing when I came through the cinema of Tarkovski.

Yes, STALKER by Tarkovsky is a great movie. But you don’t really create ‘nuclear Russians’ in your work, do you? Your scenes feel very natural, yet they are often filled with a sense of mystery and a eerie ghostly presence—like in Baba Yaga’s or The Dead Travel Fast.

Precisely “the fantasy of everyday life”. I can’t do anything that’s not overworldly to some extent. But then don’t wait for me to add robots or stuff like that in my dioramas. it is normal life – filtered through strong alcohols. Well I always had that old idea of arranging the meeting of Barabarossa and Baba Yaga.

As far as I can tell, you’re not a rivet counter, are you?

Rivet counter? Not really though I like to model exact things. I try to hide all the tricky parts through bumps of terrain when I’m too bored.

What’s wrong with tanks? Why are you so hard on them? You “sinking them in water” so often?

Well, when you “sink tanks in water” in your diorama, you don’t have to model the tracks! Aftermarket tracks are really expensive. 🙂

Are you trying to make me believe that aftermarket tracks are more expensive than water effects products?!

Haha! It’s true! 40€ Modelkasten IS2 tracks, 39€ for 750ml Resin of the Gedeo brand.. I usually do 2 dioramas at least with one pot of this resin. There is some truth about the tracks, but the general reason is that I put the *less* details possible in my dioramas because I hate spending too much time on an idea than it’s really worth. I like to see those big and powerful things incapacitated you see. There is a beauty in that.

I won’t ask you exactly how you create water effects, I know you’ve shared a lot about that on your blog. But can you tell me if there’s any ritual or specific technical step you follow in every build?

I clean the workbench. 🙂 No, I really try to make the best of my modeling time – for instance you spend less time on water if you model water for 2 dioramas at the same time etc.

In my opinion, you’re more of an artist than a modeler. You paint over your dioramas like a canvas. What kind and brand of paints do you prefer, or do you not have any favorites?

Paints, yeah I use that same technique: Alclad primer, Tamiya paints for base coats, then Mr Paint for lighting effects, Ammo and Vallejo acrylics for wet on wet techniques, re-Mr paint for light, Ammo’s paraphernalia -you know filters, grease, pigments – and then re-Mr Paint for more lighting.

Mr Paint I love because those are inks, they are very thin – if you prefer, if you spray yellow over blue, you’ll get perfect shiny green. They’re really good to overlay effects, especially when diluting them. Have a look at the blue effects on my Ramzan diorama to see what I mean -or the high shines of most of my recent stuff. Mr. Paint is a league on their own. I can only compare them with Citadel inks.

About the artist thing, that’s always been pretty funny because I have always been surrounded by “real” artists you know, musicians, painters etc etc who always looked down on me with my lowly dioramas, and now I mostly have a lot more success than they will ever do. 🙂

What piece of your work are you most proud of?

The ones where I really put 100% of my life in like red riding Hood, some of the Baba Yaga series, Galilée…The Baba Yaga series are my most personal dioramas.

What’s your latest project, or perhaps your next one?

I decided to be far present this year, I model at the same speed but I won’t show the stuff that much anymore. If you want to know, I finished 3 small dioramas today! I keep those for me for the time being, Baba Yaga like stuff. I need a few weeks to know whether they’re cool or not!

You’re finishing them today, not building them today, right? And why the few weeks of waiting, does it have to do with the paints?

Finished today! I’m not so fast, it’s just that I rationalize a lot of the time. Yes, oil paints for the figures have to dry, then the figs must be varnished etc etc. The order is:  Tamiya -> Mr Paint -> mat varnish -> oils.

I find your dioramas are made in a way that there’s something to see from every angle. They are like “pictures from all sides”. How do you achieve that?

“Pictures from all sides” ooooh yes. 🙂 At the beginning of the 2000’s I learned computer 3D and you can put your camera from every angle imaginable and it works. It must be the same for a diorama – depending on the height of the viewer, the height at which is put the diorama or even the kind of surrounding light, watching a diorama must be a unique experience.

You use kits from different brands for models and figures. Do you have some favorite brands? The ones that, when you see the box, you know you’ll like the content?

 I don’t like Miniart because of the broken parts. Otherwise… not really. You see there is about 5 kits in my unbuilt stash which is extremely few compared to the modelers I know… I certainly like what are putting out Meng, Takom and Trumpeter/HB there is a BMD-2, a T-80, a Su-15, a 85mm Russian AA gun, the Skoda 76 mm .. a Spitfire and a zero in 1/72 and *that’s it*

Has your hobby ever caused problems at home with your loved ones? And how do you manage to find a peaceful balance?

When I met my wife, I was a freelancer in France’s leading Rock mag, I was drinking loads and going to bed late. Now if I touch a drink I can’t model and i am in bed at 11PM so there’s been some progress you see.. It may still be a bit tense when I move the diorama stuff in the flat and forget to clean the window ledge where I stock all my stuff afterwards.

My wife doesn’t like my dioramas much but she doesn’t stop me from doing any either.  She told me once: “when I ask you something and I realize yoèu are actually thinking about your dioramas” that’s the real reason why. That’s a very feminine reason.

Online Presence & Showcasing

So, in fact, it’s not the dioramas she doesn’t like, but the time you spend on them? Yeah, same story everywhere. 🙂 If someone likes your style and wants to follow your work, where can they do that?

Well, my site www.jeandiorama.fr is still my main reference. But on my facebook page JBA Diorama i post e 1/35 scale model dioramas Science Fiction & Word War Sadly the whale won’t make it! It is so big it takes half of my suitcase.

However I intend to come to Holland with 3 of the big ones – Ramzan, Hell and View from a Bridge. Then about half of the littles ones I did those past few years, including the whole Baba yaga Series.

Thank you for this conversation Jean!

Cheers!

Call to Action!