Art Class - Triorama's, A Tutorial

Our home school art group have a current focus on landscapes. This particular week they have worked on Triorama's. A trinagular diorama, aren't they just super cute.

B seems to have a thing for Sydney and in particular the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, he has used these icons in the past for art inspiration.

K, of course created the cutest the little fairy habitat, that I am sure any fairy would be willing to move into.

The kids have been working on various versions of Triorama's since they took this class. It is such a simple concept that they can complete independently from beginning to end. I guess that's why love it and the fact that it is such a flexible activity that will fit into any theme you choose.

I thought I'd show you how to make one. I bet your kids love them too. :-)

To begin you need a sheet of A3 Sketch Pad Paper, the heavier the better,

You need a square, so fold one corner over to the opposite edge, so you have a triangle on the top folded piece, as pictured above.

Cut off the excess rectangular piece that sits along the edge of the triangle.

Open it out and you have a square piece of paper, folded so it is showing two triangles.

You need to see four triangles so fold the large square corner to corner the other way,

So that when it opens you now can clearly see four triangles.

(please read right to the end before going any further with this)

Choose one of those folds (doesn't matter which one) and cut along it, stopping when you get to the centre.

When you have finished cutting, slide those triangles over each other, this will become the 

base of the Triorama.

Those two triangles need to be glued together, to form the base. Use enough glue to hold them but not too much or the bottom will buckle. As you can see has happened in the Fairy Triorama above.

And that's it. Simple.

However be sure to stop prior to cutting and plan your Triorama's layout. You will need draw/colour/paint your background first. Once the background is complete you can then move ahead with the assembly of the triorama. 

When creating the little 3D pieces, such as the Sydney Opera House or the Toadstool, leave a flap across the bottom of the piece when cutting it out. Fold that flap backwards and glue it to the triorama so that it 'pops' out.

Idea's for these are endless. Glue four back to back together to create a scence or a mobile. B thought he could continue with his Australiana theme. It could work well with seasons, one triorama for each, or anything you can come up with really.

Have fun!