Karoo Origins
Credits:
Client: Karoo Origins: the Fossil Centre
2025
Producer: Dianne Makings
Project Manager: Kate Soal
Creative Director: Colin Payne
Illustration, concept art and storyboarding : Jeani Varty
3D modelling: Grant Steyn
3D posing and prototyping: Shannon Bennetts
Sculpture and Fabrication: Cristina Salvoldi
Dioramas are a quintessential part of the museum experience.
Built to life size, vistors can imagine what it would be like to encounter these animals in the Karoo 255 million years ago. Plus we made sure all the angles made for great selfies ;-)
The second consideration was how to craft these displays as action scenes. Each creature is in the middle of doing something. The Gorgonopsian is on the hunt. The Aulecephaldon is making it's escape. The Diictadons have been disturbed by these massives creatures. The Pareisaur does not concern itself with any of these details and carries on munching on horsetails, while the Prosynosuchi gently raise their heads to see what all the fuss is about.
The Triassic display similarly tells a story of a Proterosuchus hunting a Lystrosaur as a family of curious Thrinaxadons investigate the noise.
Guests must circle the dioramas for the full story emerge. Our greatest joy has been watching visiting children piece the story together and narrate it to their parents.
We often get asked to install touch screen components to make it "more interactive" but we believe that there is nothing quite so interactive as our own imaginations as we confront how small we are in the greater scheme of time.
Crafted initally in 3d software and then brought to life by talented sculptor teams the combination of computer accuracy and hand crafted details breathed life and humour into the scenes.
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