We recently posted some pictures on Instagram of the Calusa fishing camp diorama featured in our South Florida People & Environments exhibit. The happy responses were a little unexpected. Apparently the miniature Calusa camp is a personal favorite for some of our regular visitors!

The Calusa diorama was intended to tell the story of Calusa fishing in one scene – all types of fishing techniques, the gear used, the processing of the catch.

One of the ways in which the Calusa may have been able to intensify their food production was by means of large-scale fish weirs, wing dams, traps, and holding pens. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace

Rich inshore food resources were vital to the coastal Calusa, who were primarily a fishing people. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace

The Calusa peoples mainly depended on fishing, hunting, and gathering for their food. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace

People lived and fished on Florida’s Gulf coast long before the first pyramids were built in Egypt. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace

Although the Calusa probably kept small home-gardens, they raised no corn, beans, or manioc. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace

Researchers worked with artists to carefully represent Calusa life down to the smallest details. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace

Rather than rely on agriculture, the Calusa survived in the productive estuarine environment of the southwest Florida Gulf coast. Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace

To create the diorama, Bill Marquardt and Darcie MacMahon worked with the artists, providing content based on historical and archaeological information about Calusa fishing. Bob Leavy, a long-time staff sculptor/artisan, created the 3D elements, and Stacey Breheny, another staff artist, painted the backdrop.

We originally built the miniature camp in two halves because it was made as part of a small traveling exhibit we created about Gulf Coast fishing traditions. If you look closely at the water’s edge, you can still see where we broke the diorama in two pieces for transportation.

The exhibit toured 10 Gulf Coast locations, and then we brought it home to become part of the new permanent South Florida exhibit that we opened on Oct. 5, 2002.

The overall South Florida exhibit designer was Dorr Dennis. Dorr had worked at the Smithsonian, and he relocated to Gainesville in the 1970s to be the Florida Museum exhibit designer when we moved our exhibits into Dickinson Hall. He was our lead designer for many years and the South Florida exhibit was his final project.

Doug Jones awards exhibit designer Dorr Dennis the Thompson Van Hyning Award on behalf of the Florida Museum. Florida Museum photo by museum staff

Stacey Breheny painted many of the exhibit murals at the Florida Museum. Florida Museum photo by museum staff

Bob Leavy was a sculptor and 3D artist at the Florida Museum for many decades. Florida Museum photo by museum staff

Bill Marquardt, Dorr Dennis and Darcie MacMahon cut the ribbon at the opening of the “South Florida People & Environments” exhibit in October 2002. Florida Museum photo by Tammy Johnson

Exhibit info: South Florida People & Environments

Did you know… People lived and fished on Florida’s Gulf Coast long before the first pyramids were built in Egypt!