The diorama has a base of polystyrene (EPS) covered with spray polyurethane foam (SPF)
which was sculptured into rocks and afterwards painted with acrylic paints.
The crates and wooden planks and stones are made from extruded polystyrene (XPS)
and painted with acrylic paints.
The tree is made from wooden branches glued together, covered with plaster, and coloured with acrylic paints. The leaves are made from spray painted teloxys and covered with coloured sawdust.
The rest of the vegetation is made mainly from dried plants.
Different LED lights were strategically positioned to light up the diorama.
The statuettes are quite old and are made by an artist known as Gusti. Information about this artist
is quite scarce. The body of the figurines is made of dried clay, covered with fabric to create clothes, blanketed with a thin layer of plaster and painted finished with water-based paints. The sheep which are found in the second layer of the diorama also have branches for feet and tin ears.
The statuettes were restored back to life by Christian Grech : Tar-Remissa Art Restoration
Baby Jesus is new and was sculptured by Emmanuel Grech.
This diorama forms part of an exhibition of Maltese Cribs/Dioramas that is being held in the
Basilica di Sant' Andrea della Valle Roma.
The organiser of the exhibition is 'Għimmanu-el, Għaqda Presepisti Għajnsielem Gozo - Malta'
and is being funded by the Malta Tourism Authority and the Goverment of Malta.
The exhibition will be open from 8th December 2023 till 4th February 2024.
