Chad Davis
Eng 352
Prof. Arnowitz
Coral Reef Diorama Proposal
Purpose. I decided to do a coral reef diorama because I think people should look at the
beauty of nature. I also thought that it’s good to look at the world through a different perspective
that you might not be used to. I chose a coral reef because of the many the different colors and
exoticness of the ecosystem under the sea. Coral reefs are some of the most beautiful things in
nature because of the different species of fish and creatures that inhabit the ocean floor. Another
reason I decided to do a coral reef for my diorama because I thought that it would be fun to
attempt to recreate an underwater ecosystem. This paper will show how you can create your own
coral reef diorama.
What You Will Need. The first thing you will need to recreate this underwater
ecosystem is creativity and lots of it. You have to get very creative with when making a diorama
of a coral reef. Creativity is needed because you have to make it seem like the diorama is alive,
that it’s actually an ecosystem teaming with living breathing creatures. The creatures that live in
a habit like a coral reef are very lively creatures and they have to appear alive in the diorama.
That’s where the creativity comes into play it’s vital in making the inanimate animate. You have
to be creative with your resources.
One of the main resources you will need is a box of some kind. Any old box will not do,
you can’t use a big, old cardboard box to do this diorama. An old shoe would be good or a box
about that size. That’s a good size because of the next item that you will need, which is a picture
of coral reef creatures. The next item on the list is actual coral reef creatures that you can get at
an arts and craft store and some shells, sand, other knickknacks that coral reef has, scissors, a
stapler, some glue, and a flashing light.
How to Make it. Making the actual diorama is the fun part of the project. The first step
to make the coral reef diorama is to get a background picture of a coral reef and the creatures that
live in that habitat. The second step would be to glue the picture to the bottom of the box. The
third step would be to rub glue on all the sides of the box. The fourth step would be to glue all
the coral reef items and knickknacks to the sides of the box and the last step would be to pour
and spread sand around the bottom side of the box. Now you should take your light source and
staple it or somehow hang it from the top of the box. There you have it a diorama of a coral reef.
Problems and Outcome. I didn’t really have any trouble making this diorama after all I
am an engineer. My desired outcome came out just the way I imagined it. The light I used is a
stress ball that looks like a sea urchin so it very fitting of the diorama and the light changes
colors which really helps the scene. The changing colors help make the coral reef come to life as
if the creatures are moving. I think that a coral reef is an excellent idea for a diorama. Dioramas
are a 3-D miniature recreation of a scene and I believe the best scene for recreating it is
something that is lively and beautiful. Nature is a beauty in itself and recreating something lively
from something that inanimate. That is the beauty of a diorama to recreate animation from
something inanimate.