A secret diorama is a diorama built in an unexpected place. This gives the diorama a level of not only visual delight but of discovery. And the theme of the diorama can be closely linked to the location which makes it really special.
Many years ago I built a complete, and extensive, diorama in a dresser drawer. I remember this diorama very fondly because it was not just a miniature place it was also a hidden place. There is an added level of enjoyment to a diorama that is hidden and waiting to be discovered. Here are some tips and hints on where and how to make little secret dioramas.
Places to hide your secret diorama
It can be hidden almost anywhere but ideally you should hide it in a place where people will discover it. Inside a dresser drawer is a nice place but this will get very little discovery from others!
Think about your hobbies and this will give you clues as to where and how to make your diorama. Do you read a lot of books? You could actually strip out the pages from a large book, build a diorama inside it, and then place it back into the bookshelf. Do you play a musical instrument like the guitar and have an old one that you don’t use anymore? Build a diorama right inside the body of the guitar. Do you entertain guests a lot? How about building a diorama right inside a cookie tin then leaving it on the coffee table with the lid on! When somebody asks if they could have some cookies imagine the delight when they open it up and see a mini diorama. If you have an extra shelf in your kitchen cabinets you could build a little diorama of a kitchen right in it. And this brings me to the next topic of tying the location of the diorama in with the actual theme of the diorama.
Make the theme similar to the location
If you want to add an extra level of enjoyment and wonder to your diorama you should link the location to the theme. What I mean is that let’s say you build the kitchen cabinet diorama you could make the diorama an actual small kitchen scene much like what would be found inside a doll house. If you make a diorama inside a book you could make the diorama in a theme that compliments the title of the book. For example, if you use a book on the history of dragons you could make the scene inside a scene of dragons. Inside your guitar you could make the diorama of a little symphony orchestra. The only limits are the limits of your imagination.
Let’s get really creative
Inside the freezer is a fun place to hide a small diorama and you can make it of an igloo and penguins. This is a wonderful little theme to make and being inside the freezer will bring chuckles to anyone that discovers it. If you live in a climate that snows you could actually spend some time outside making little snowmen, igloos or other things out of real snow then put them in your freezer diorama.
If you are ambitious you could start to think bigger by tackling a diorama in a closet project. This is a project that has a lot of potential for creative exploration and it allows you to use either larger objects or to use many smaller objects in a very complex scene. You could even make the closet a small dollhouse like structure.
Making a secret diorama is a great project because it has several levels of enjoyment. You enjoy making it, you get to enjoy looking at it and you get the extra enjoyment of watching other people discover it. And there are a million different ideas you could use for your diorama. Just look around your house for little enclosed spaces and you will be surprised at the ideas you come up with.
For more interesting articles, ideas and tutorials on creative diorama making visit the authors diorama project site at: Have Fun Making Creative Fantasy Dioramas
