A lot of artistic license in this one...
It all started with one Confederate flag bearer that I got at the Gettysburg Miniature Soldier shop. He sat on a Civil War bookshelf for a couple years, but I always felt like he deserved a "scene." In my mind, I always kept coming back to The Cornfield at Antietam, and in my imagination, the idea grew to include the Iron Brigade, as well.
I stalled for a long time because the only diorama corn stalks that I knew of, from Hobby Lobby, were too short for my soldiers. I thought about cutting and piecing together tops and bottoms to make each and every talk taller, but that seemed painstakingly slow. But in the end, that's exactly what I ended up doing.
As most of us can relate to, I'm sure, the idea continued to grow... the flag of the 1st Texas, more soldiers on each side. While my greatest attention was to the Cornfield itself, I also wanted to pay homage to the lone tree in one of Gardner's Antietam photographs, as well as the limestone outcroppings that are present across that part of the field. Troiani's painting of the 1st Texas in the Cornfield was a huge inspiration, as well as Keith Rocco's painting of the Iron Brigade emerging from the Cornfield.
The tree started with a cool looking stick that I found...
somewhere. Other smaller sticks were accumulated from walks with my wife. A little stone would catch my eye on a long run and I'd pick it and bring it home. Dirt from my wife's family farm. The base is from a tree that had been taken down at my parents' home, where I grew up. A true labor of love!
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Bringing the