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Origins

Technical Execution (3)

Braun used a line grid to transfer the preliminary drawing to the large-format canvas (which measured almost 1,000 m²). For this, a reticule of squares with sides of one decimetre was placed over the draft, photographed and then projected onto the canvas with a 10x magnification. The canvas, for its part, was first marked out with an analogue network of squares ten times larger, so that the individual squares could be accurately transferred from the draft.

A moving tower was used for the priming (two coats of white lead in oil), for transferring the preliminary drawing, and for the actual painting work, again with oil as the binding agent. The tower moved on tracks laid alongside the canvas and was fitted with wooden platforms at different heights. The overall painting was appraised from a dais that would eventually become the spectators’ platform. This platform was erected at the correct height and distance between painting and onlooker.

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