Harold Hahn

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

Each ship model was built then set into the diorama

 

[Roger Pellett]

I’ve always admired Hahn’s diorama. I know that he had it at the Newport NRG conference in 1980, possibly the Marietta, Ohio conference in 1975, and of course it’s been on display at the Mariners Museum. IMHO it nicely captures the activity in a colonial shipyard.

One minor (lighthearted) criticism. You can tell that he was no farm boy. Those oxen look like a crossbreed between moose and a Rinocerous!

Roger

 

[GaryA]

the details are incredible at such a small scale

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Dave, Absolutely Brilliant. Do you know what wood he would have carved them out of?

 

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

Dave, Absolutely Brilliant. Do you know what wood he would have carved them out of?

the ships were built from hard Maple he also used west Indian boxwood and firethorn.

 

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

Harold Maxwell Hahn was and artist who did watercolor, oils, woodworking, etching, writing, model building, pen and ink and carving. His ship models were criticized for not adhering to strict historical accuracy and his model ships, by some, were not considered "ship models" they were dioramas. The tension between Harold and the ship modeling community was the result of his work being viewed through a narrow perspective as what a historical ship model should be. To Harold a ship model was a stark and sterile object, his approach was to bring a sense of life into the model. Harold was a storyteller his work is more than just a model it told the story of the ship, life aboard a ship, The models gave perspective they are dynamic works of art.

The colonial shipyard begins with the back round painting and creating the water



the models were set in place



piece by piece each model was set against the back round

 

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

More and more details are added

 

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

the activities bring the setting to life

 

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

life in colonial America at the dock and in the shipyard

 

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

it is not just about a colonial ship model it is the story of how they were built

 

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

in the smalest details a story of a colonial shipyard told by a master builder

 

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

And so ends the story of Harold Maxwell Hahn

 

[GaryA]

You know, just looking at the work that was done in this seas/landcape, one can see that Harold would have been a very fast carver because the amount of figurines and such that went into this presentation is phenomenal. I have done a bit of carving and by the time I have finished one carving, I sort of look at how I did things, but if one is consistent in any form of artistry, be it carvings, paintings, or model making, when you first start off, things take a bit of time, but if you keep on following up in the practise of using your hands and mind, then things do speed up. So, I guess enjoy the ride and never stop. Harold did not, that's for sure.
He was a great artist.

 

[DAWarden-(Jaager)]

hard Maple he also used west Indian boxwood and firethorn.

Hard Maple is a North American species - (Acer saccharum) (Sugar, Rock) . In Europe Sycamore Maple, (Acer pseudoplatanus) is close enough.
West Indian boxwood and I believe now Bermuda boxwood are names for Castelo Boxwood. Palo Blanko
Firethorn - also used by August Crabtree - was identified by The Mariner's Museum as Washington Hawthorn. For Common Hawthorn "Its small pores and medium-high density give it a very fine and even texture not too unlike true Boxwood (Buxus sempervirens)"

 

[Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)]

West Indian boxwood and I believe now Bermuda boxwood are names for Castelo Boxwood.

two different woods

both are from south America but not even in the same family

Castelo is Calycophyllum multiflorum
West Indian boxwood is Gossypiospermum praecox

was identified by The Mariner's Museum as Washington Hawthorn.

what Hahn and Crabtree uses was firethorn Pyracantha

Hawthorn is Crataegus monogyna

same general family but totally different types of wood

Both are in the Rosaceae the rose family, a family of flowering plants that includes 4,828 known species in 91 genera.