Building an Island out of foam-help!

msfixit

Member
Hey everybody,

My experience with foam is pretty limited to vertical scenery, so I'm in new territory right now.

The director wants an island, (roughly 3x3 to 5x5) that can move around stage and be placed at different angles. It needs to hold 2 to 3 middle schoolers and be able to be moved by 2 to 3 middle schoolers. It won't have any trees, but the shape will be similar to this:
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What I was thinking was to use a kiddie pool as a base for the basic shape and creating a wood frame to create a load-bearing platform under it.

This is where I'm getting stumped, to disguise the kiddie pool and round out the shape, I was thinking I could spray some great stuff around the kiddle pool and carve it down into the shape I want. Would that be strong enough? Would it work with cheesecloth?

Also, I would have to make it sturdy enough to stand on: what foam coat should I use? It'll need to survive a week of tech and 3 performances with a horde of middle school kids.

This is really the only piece of scenery for this show, so I can afford a bit of time and money to it.
 
I would use extruded polystyrene foam board as the primary base, and then carve out the shape from that, rather than spray a bunch of expanding foam. Build a platform underneath, then layer the foam board above it and on the sides, gluing it together with 3M 30NF Fastbond contact adhesive, then carve down from there. For a coating, Jaxsan should be tough enough to handle the middle school hoards.
 
I would use extruded polystyrene foam board as the primary base, and then carve out the shape from that, rather than spray a bunch of expanding foam. Build a platform underneath, then layer the foam board above it and on the sides, gluing it together with 3M 30NF Fastbond contact adhesive, then carve down from there. For a coating, Jaxsan should be tough enough to handle the middle school hoards.
As DRU said, start with your platform and build up the foam in the style of a contour model.
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The thinner the foam, the easier it will be to get a smooth contour.
 
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Use a huge block of foam on a platform, carve with an electric chain saw. Cover with fiberglass mesh. I forgot what this is actually called, but it is similar to the mesh drywall tape, but in a big roll. Coat with stucco, or similar thin-set cment product. Paint.
 

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