Alou Diorama! A Peek into the Process
- Charline Davis
- Mar 3
- 2 min read
Does this look familiar, but more...3-D? Yes! Fans will readily recognize a picture from Alou: The Martian Agent recreated into a diorama!
At last, a long-time dream is in the beginning stages of reality. And here is the first scene! There are lots of future plans to do with a series of dioramas, (ohh I better catch myself before I give too much away!) but for now, this first diorama got to debut as decor at its first event this weekend!
Made from foam, clay, cloth, paper, paint, and plastic, this mixed media creation was an absolute delight to assemble! Although, it was hard to be patient with the process long enough to let all the clay and paint dry...it wanted so much to be put all together!
But when it was all done, and the last piece firmly glued in place, it was surreal to step back and see the world of Alou coming to life in this new medium!
In the diorama, every attention to detail was kept...even in the inside of the Martian dome! If you take a peek into the interior, you'll see the floppy-eared ANR leader himself, the infamous large eyeball plant, and all the signage found in the original illustrations!
In this modern day and age, with reading on the decline, it is more important than ever to engage our newest readers with the joy of books and the many magical worlds books have to offer. (Click here for a list of five of my recommendations of other wonderful children's books to inspire your budding reader) Many children do not realize that books aren't inherently dull. They are used to equating books with school and are accustomed to movies and TV shows feeding them almost constant entertainment. At my latest event I had many young children asking what TV show Alou was from and seeming almost confused when I explained I had made him up and his world was only in books, as if characters are exclusively reserved to be on-screen! From my first event in 2018 until now I had never had these questions posed to me! My belief is it is indicative of our ever-growing screen-using problem, of children who are being raised on iPads and screens and rarely get a chance to let their little minds wander or explore the world around them. My hope is that Alou, with his curiosity and unrufflable personality, can reach even the most reluctant young reader and immerse him or her into the world of imagination and reading...a skill they will need the rest of their lives! That they will get a chance to set aside their screens and step into a world of reading that will expand their minds and grow them from the inside out!
But I digress! Do you have a favorite scene from the Alou trilogy you want to see come to life in a diorama?
More to come!
-Charline Davis
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