The amazing Clervaux Castle Diorama!

I don't think this has been posted before, even if so, it is well worth a double post! Monsieur Joachim has been working on it for more then five years and the result is just stunning! For me there is a very personal connotation as the house where my father was born is part of the diorama, as a kid I knew all the people living in the houses, I even know who some of the civilians depicted in the figures are! To my shame I have to admit though that I have never seen the dio in real life!!!!

Enjoy:

Diorama Clervaux 1/35 scale, the complete story by Claude Joachim

 

Great find! He did a amazing detailed work.

 

God, I wish I had his patience, never mind his skills!

 

Very nice, must admit.

 

Salut

This is Claude, the builder of the Dio. I noticed your post during my regular Google Ego trip

Glad you like the dio of course. What is your father's house if i may ask? Did i miss some reference pictures you may had in your possesion?

I plan to finish the dio during next year and may be present then with the finished work at the Belvaux expo 2013 (all that of course is still unsure). After that i am still hoping to find a place in a museum in Clervaux, so you may see it there in a few years.

Looking forward to see you some day near my display!

Greets
Claude

 

That is great! Rich A. in Pa.

 

Moien Claude,

Once again kudos for your work! I hope to see it in real life soon!

About the house: I spoke to my uncle yesterday and I was wrong, alltough the "Gillenshaus", underneath the "Maartplatz", was my Grandfathers' house, it must have been destroyed in the later phases of the Battle of the Bulge! So after the war my grandparents lived in a house that is nowadays part of the Hotel Koener, the famous picture of the GI's waiting to get a quarter, in front of the Hotel central must have been taken either from there or from the neighboring house. Unfortunately I do not have any pictures, but I will ask my uncle!

Cheers

Tom


EDIT:

I forgot to write that I really like the fact that you included young "Servais' Jang" watching the sniper!

 

Moien Tom,

I spoke to someone on the Walfer Expo about the Gillen house and he told me that the owner (your grand father) died only a few years ago. That is really a pitty as i could have interviewed him for a better rendering of the house. But unfortunately i only decided to build this one recently.
If you followed my Blog you noticed that i worked only with this picture (the house we talk about, this is for the other users here, is the one with the timber framework.


I discovered also a picture with the house in the "Cliärwwer Billerbouch" and it was taken months after the war! So it still stood then. It was taken during some festivities, the town of Clervaux received an Dodge ambulance as a gift from the US Army, and one of the photos showed the roof and a little part of the Gillen House. ( i can post it tomorrow if you like to see it)

Because of lack of space (debth and length) and of course the lack of pictures i am improvising the build completely , with the exception of the side view from the photo.
Right now i am occupied to install a bit of indirect lightning to allow the viewer a better inside look. I am after all spending a lot of hours with the build and hate to see it disappear in the semi darkness.

I will have finished in a week or so and will follow on with a simulation of the big "Bouvier" house, a smaller version of it, as the original proportions would dwarf all the other houses.
I will finish the build then with the "Villa Prüm", scaled down a bit also as it is a monster of a house and is bigger then my space left. As it is a mini castle by itself and highly complicated, i wil certainly need a year to build it. A bit of vegetation here and there and i will be done, after some 10 years!

Cheers
Claude

 

The guy in Walfer must have been talking about my great uncle, granddad's brother. I'm looking forward to seeing the Villa Prüm and the "Bouvi's Haus"!

BTW: The daughter from the Bouvier house should still be alive, I think she lives in Neuilly-sur-Seine! That might be a possible source for pictures!

 

The Bouvier House (as the Villa Prüm) is still there, so no real need for reference pictures as i am not going to do any interior here.

Thanks

Claude

 

Tom, i don't know if you still follow the thread but i forgot something to ask you

I want to hang a picture in the kitchen of my model So if you like that idea and of course have one in your archive, you may send me an old black and white portrait or family photo of someone of your family who could potentially have been hanging there. The owner, his brother, any old wedding picture, whatever you may have in relation with the old Gillen family.
.
You know that it will be shrinked to some 1.5 x 1 cm max, hardly recognizable, but it could add a touch of reality and be fun for you when you visit the dio in the future.

Use my Email adress from the website to send any picture. I will treat it of course very confidentially apart this miniaturizing.


Salut a Merci am Viraus
Claude

 

Salut Caude,


There was not much of the old stuff left when my Grandfather died, I for sure have nothing! I will ask my unce and if I'm successful I will get back to you!

Ciao

Tom

 

That is soooo cool. Wish it was finished 10 yrs sooner as that is when I visited the museum and stayed in the hotel there. I may have a pic of my son climbing on that same Sherman. I will see if I can dig it up

 

Hi everyone,

15 months later the whole diorama is finished!




It has a size off 3 x 2.2 m

The past three years I worked on those two last river modules



and other details of course


Below is the house we talked about in the posts above, the farmer's house




Overall it took me 8 years to build it!
This adventure is now concluded with the publication of my second book about the build of the diorama.


The book with the title "Capturing Clervaux - the final hour" is in english language , 144 pages , 600 pictures, and describes in all detail the planning and building process. It can be bought on my website and is starting to be available throughout the world also.
Please visit my website to see a preview and first comments and critics about it
http://www.diorama-clervaux.com
In a couple of years, isn't it Tom, the diorama will probably be on permanent display in the original castle of Clervaux. I am looking forward to that moving operation!

Thanks for looking

Greets
Claude

 

A most excellent model.
Great work.

 

Hi Claude,
We are all looking forward to it!

 

Thank you, but no need to look forward, the book is out already!

Claude

 

I was writing about the Diorama being on permanent display in Clervaux, I bought a copy of the new book already, It´s really nice.

 

Nice to see an update. That truly is a fantastic model. Humbling. My hat is off to you, sir.

 

This model has caught my imagination.
I do hope it gets to live in the museum.
If so I'll make a point on calling in on it next summer.
Anyone know of any campsites nearby ?
edit: found one. http://www.camping-clervaux.lu/
It'd be agood place to spend a few days.
I've been reading up on it my old copy of ATB book on the Bulge.