Detailed Description of the Catacomb Dioramas

      Hello! Thank you all so much for voting in my poll last week! This post would not have been a thing if it was not for you guys! If you would like to participate in the poll for next week’s post, here is a link: https://strawpoll.com/5gf29dayv

    A few months ago, I realized that I could create 3D art and not just on paper and canvas. I started thinking about some things that I might like to sculpt or create that was more interactable than a painting.

     On top of that, I started becoming interested in catacombs in general a few years ago. I am intriuged by the mystery and the craftsmanship of them. A long time ago, I was frequently watching videos and reading stories, both fictional and nonfictional, about catacombs. Suddenly, when I was thinking about what I could create, this came into mind.

     The first thing that came to mind that I could create is a small diorama of some catacombs that I create out of sand and glue. I would want it to be in a box that has clear sides, so all of the tunnels are visible. I have always wanted to convey a feeling of suspense and slight anxiety with my art, and I really hope to convey these emotions with this piece.

     I know that this is nowhere near what people think of when they look at my art that I have recently made, but this is what I really want to create. I love creating other things, but I feel like this kind of thing is my true calling.

     Even though this would be a pretty big project, I do not think that there would be that many materials involved. I would want to make my own box for this out of plexiglass and some scrap wood. This would be a pretty easy part, since I already know how to do this and I know that my father would help me.

     In the past, I have seen a lot of videos of people making miniature scenes and things such as terrariums. Sometimes, these people use sand and an adhesive to create landforms. I would like to do a similar thing to create the ground and the negative space of the tunnels.

     However, I still need to do a lot of research about what kind of adhesive I should be using for this kind of project. I need something strong enough to both hold its form when I am doing multiple layers and to stick all of the sand together for a long time.

     There is one more material that I am not sure how I will incorporate yet, but I want to embed lights into parts of the tunnels. You will not be able to see the lights when you are just looking at it as a viewer, but they will be providing ambient light in some parts of the catacombs. I want to get string lights for this and hide the extra lights in the sand, but this might be a little more difficult than I am anticipating.

     Here are some diagrams that I painted to show a bird’s eye view of all three layers that I would like to make. This is an ideal blueprint, and may not come out like this at all. The first picture is a key for all of the different things that the diagrams are portraying.

     Even though I do not yet have the means to create this project yet, I still wanted to have a way to show what it will look like when it is done. I am also planning on using these diagrams while I actually sculpt this project in the very near future, so I am glad that I have already made them.

     If I have time in the near future, I may add some side views of the “finished box” to this blog post, but I have not created those yet. I would really like to create more diagrams of this project, but these that I already have in this blog post are all I really need to make it. All I really need to do is some more research and learn how to do these things, so there is no need for more diagrams.

     I think that my desire to create more diagrams comes from not wanting to take on such a large project and being afraid of it. I also think that I just like to visualize things in the most in depth way possible before creating them. I have recently started sketching out paintings on a small post-it note before actually painting and I think it has really helped me create better paintings.

     I’m wildly excited to start creating this diorama because I never thought that in my life I would be sculpting tiny tunnels out of sand in a clear box. This is a big milestone for me, and I am so excited to cross it in the near future. There isn’t much stopping me from doing this project now, so I should get started on it soon.

     However, there are a lot of things that I have started and not finished, so I really need to finish some of those before I start another huge project like this. So, don’t get your hopes up for seeing this diorama come to life that soon! But, you will still be seeing all of the other things I am finishing along the way before this project!

    Thank you all so much for reading my blog post and supporting my journey! If you would like to vote on what post I make next Wednesday, here is a link for that: https://strawpoll.com/5gf29dayv I am really excited to start this project and I hope you guys are as excited as I am to see the finished results in the future!

    P.S. If any of you have any advice on anything I mentioned in this post, please feel free to send me a message or leave a comment! I would really love to hear from you, and I need all the help I can get!