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My DUNE diorama

Having watched the new and improved Dune film on HBO-Max three times now (and loving every second of it), I thought it was time to make a Dune diorama for myself. I love the Dune universe, having been introduced to it by my father many moons ago.

The scene I depict is a giant sandworm passing by a castle built on solid rock, on the planet of Arrakis--better known as Dune. I saw the David Lynch-directed version of Dune with my father on opening day, back in 1984. While that version had its moments, we didn't really care for it too much.

The sandworm and the base of the castle were sculpted from Scupley, which had to be baked. The castle itself was sculpted from Apoxie putty, which air-hardened on its own. The Apoxie putty allowed for more details in such a small scale. My father and I watched the Dune miniseries on the Sci-Fi Channel, and by that time, I had read all six of Frank Herbert's original Dune novels. The less said about the miniseries, the better.

The desert is actually Flex Paste from Woodland Scenics. This also air-hardens--and when it did, I painted it, just as I had painted the sandworm and castle. Unfortunately, my dad--having passed away a while ago--couldn't see the new Dune film. But I loved it; the 2021 Dune is finally the Dune that I know and love that's been presnted on screen. I think my father would have liked this new version, as well. --SF

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