Mini Sculpture: Day of the Dead aka Diorama Junkie

Dia de los Muertos  Matchbox Mini

When I was a wee thing, my parents took me to museums all the time. I especially loved the tiny dioramas and used to pretend to be shrunk down and in the action, whether it was a scene from daily life or an epic battle. I just adored the completeness of the tiny worlds and their frozen-in-time quality. Can you guess who spent a lot of time alone as a kid? Museums gave me a love of miniatures that grew into awe when I went to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago to see Colleen Moore’s fairy castle.
If you have never heard of this magical castle, look it up. Right now. It sported tiny goblets, chandeliers with electricity and a tiny bathtub with running water. If I could have shrunk I’d have moved right in! So naturally I started to make miniatures of my own. When I was eight they were crafted in tinfoil; today usually Fimo or potter’s clay. Inspired by the folk art of Mexico, today’s post features a tiny diorama for the Day of the Dead depicting a little calavera figure setting up an offrenda. Props to museum dioramas, José Guadalupe Posada and folk artists of Mexico for the inspiration.

So tiny!