The Praxinoscope-Theater
By Christelle Odoux on Saturday, November 6 2010, 08:53 - Inventions - Permalink
An optical toy invented by Emile Reynaud in 1879, the Praxinoscope-Theatre gives the illusion of movement to characters in a setting. This technique to create two different supports, for animation and for fixed elements, is still used by cartoon animators.
Émile Reynaud got a silver medal at the Industrial Exhibition in Paris in 1879 for all of his praxinoscopes.
The characters on the strips of this optical toy were drawn on a black background. The Praxinoscope is integrated in a box built to allow the illusion. On the box cover is a small window where the viewer can watch the movement. Below this window, inside the open box, the drawing of the decor is arranged. Halfway between the window and mirrors of the Praxinoscope is a tilted panel, decorated with the picture of a theater curtain.
On the tilted panel (viewer side) is a small glass plate that reflects the decor. On the other side of the panel (Praxinoscope side), is adjusted a small opening that lets us glimpse, through the glass plate, the characters that are reflected in the mirrors of the cylinder. The characters seem to appear in the foreground of the decor and are animated as soon as one turns the drum of the Praxinoscope.
