Forum > The Central Powers
WWI display
QMSWalrus:
--- Quote from: Gustaf on January 18, 2007, 05:27:49 PM ---"...I am not a re enactor, but I do some living history (the differance is that I sleep in a warm bed and eat hot food,) ..."
--- End quote ---
Gus,
I fear you and I must disagree about what constitutes "Living History" and what constitutes "Re-enactment"*.
As I see it, it is the re-enactor who has the warm bed (or modern sleeping bag), eats 'out of period' and uses modern 'camping' furniture - regardless of the quality of their kit or impression.
The 'Living Historian' is the one in for the 'total immersion' experience if possible not coming back to the present until the end of the muster - the aim being to LIVE the part.
A number who would class themselves as 're-enactors' are really Living Historians, others merely 'thug and bash' powder burners.
Perhaps this is just a European/US divide.
Regards
Tom (in London)
*This is probably the wrong place for this post, but I'll leave that to the moderators
Gustaf:
Hey Tom,
You have a well presented point, but I think you will find that most of the people who post on this board who call themselves re enactors, are the kind who do the total immersion, that is, they eat authentic food, and shun any modern items that would make the night a little more comfortable. In this area, a living history is usually presented for the benefit of an audience. My uniforms are normally displayed on maniquins (also called dummies) and I often attend the display in period dress, and I often hear people say, "look, that dummy moves" and my wife laughs.
There are two reasons I do not do the total immersion living history (or re enacting), I can not bring myself to counter a lifetime of teaching that one does not point a firearm at anyone unless you are prepaired to take their life, and there is no venue in my area. If I lived in the east, I would be very tempted to retrain myself.
Best wihses
Gus
lilkender:
Nice, Gustaf, thanks for sharing! Do you take all that with you to events? What do you do, take a bus for all the mannequins? It looks like a nice museum display!
Yes, we could argue about the difference between living history and reenacting forever and never agree. For a lot of people the terms are interchangeable. I think of reenacting as participating in a battle while living history is more interactive with patrons, whether at an outdoor camping event or in a historic house/museum. Where they slept or what they did after-hours makes no difference to me!
Gustaf:
Hi lilkender,
I do take this display to events, and it does take a fair bit of room to transport, the maniquins are of my own design and are fairly light so it is not too much trouble. I dismount the equipment and the more valuable garments, so the maniquins can be stacked on a bed in a camp trailer, my wife says that if I designed my maniquins with articulated legs, we could get a school bus and fill the seats.
I see different sectors of history buffs sometimes look down their noses oa other groups, but we all are interested in the same thing, it is that some have more commitment to the studies, and those who have only a casual commitment often will become hard core with time.
Best wishes
Gus
dwmmg08:
Wow, Gustav, where are you located? I found that I learned a lot about what was and couldn't have been done with regards to wearing the uniform and equipment by re-enacting WWI or being a living historian in WWI, what ever you prefer; but it takes having a different attitude than just "busting caps". After having done that, I felt much more confident setting up my displays, having actually used much of the equipment under simulated wartime conditions. It also added to my ability to talk to the public and tell them about the items and how they were used. ;D
I especially like your Austrian display! I've thought of doing Austrian for years, and have some of the equipment, but not the Tornister; I may get there yet! ;)
Great display, and a great collection!
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