Miniatures by Carissa Rho
How did you first get started making miniatures?
In April 2015, I stumbled upon a YouTube video of someone making edible miniature food and after a few more clicks through other videos, I ended up watching a polymer clay miniature food tutorial. It was like discovering a whole new world, really. I had some polymer clay left over from a sculpting project I did prior and I made a loaf of bread that same night. And I’ve fallen in love with it since then.
Miniatures by Cutchi Cutchi
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What’s your earliest memory with miniatures?
My earliest memory with miniatures was going to the children’s museum in Chicago and always wanting to go to the “miniatures” room that they had there. I was always inspired by them, and I started seeing artists recreating tiny miniature babies in clay, and I started sculpting them. I always thought that anything that was miniature was cuter, so I began sculpting anything I could see in miniature scale: vases, school supplies, plates, etc.
What was the first miniature you made?
Joshua Smith of Espionage Gallery
What’s your earliest memory with miniatures?
I have been fascinated with miniatures and modelmaking ever since I was little and can remember making miniature things out of cardboard boxes ever since I was very young.
How did you first get started making miniature sculptures?
It first started about 5 or 6 years ago when I was in a group exhibition customizing dumpsters made out of MDF. I decided to grime mine up and made a miniature version of myself complete with replica clothing and went dressed in the same outfit. The interest stems from building model kits when I was a kid and I have always been fascinated with miniature scenes from model railroads.
Alan Hamer Miniatures
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What’s your earliest memory with metalworking and horshoeing?
Learning to weld, repair and fabricate ranching and farming equipment. I was building minibikes and go-karts at a very young preteen age.
At first, I just wanted to learn horseshoeing to do my own horses but, the more I learned, the more I wanted to learn. I studied it in college and corrective horseshoeing grew into a profession.
What’s your earliest memory with miniatures?
My father was an architect and I did some scale models of his buildings for him. I was very young and it was fun play for me then.
Marty Stark of Lilliput Land
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What’s your earliest memory with miniatures? How did Lilliput Land come to be in 1976?
Well, I wasn’t a child when I got involved in miniatures. I’m a crafty guy, I’ve always had a workshop. When I lived on Long Island my space was filled with table saws, radial arm saws, and more. Eventually my mother decided to go into business. She had amassed thirteen dollhouses; it was quite the collection. We had Cape Cod dollhouses, brownstones, and colonials. As a teacher, I would take my free time and work in the store. I worked long hours, and that was the arrangement for 10 years. Once the shop’s rent doubled, we decided to go the show route. Early on, my mom did about 24 shows a year. As she got older, we still did about 12 shows a year and I would do the four biggest with her.
Miniature Architecture by Ittyblox
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What’s your earliest memory with miniatures?
That would be as a kid walking through Madurodam, a theme park in the Netherlands with Dutch miniature buildings. You can walk around them and even control some actions like opening a dam and so forth. It’s really great for kids and parents. Kids see the miniatures as big toys, while parents recognize the buildings and are fascinated about how detailed they are.
What are 1-2 pivotal experiences you had with architectural design?
Orsi’s Miniatures
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What’s your earliest memory with miniatures?
I was probably four years old, and spending the summer with my maternal grandparents. There wasn’t any other children around, so my granny gave me my mother’s childhood toy furniture: a 1:6 scale bed, 1:10 scale cupboard, armchairs, and an enamel bathtub. I spent the major part of the summer playing with those and making up stories. I still have the cupboard and that old, rusty, enamel bathtub.
How did you first get started making miniatures?
Independence Seaport Museum Features Silver Ships in Miniature
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The Independence Seaport Museum is currently exhibiting Silver Ships of the Seven Seas, a collection of miniature ships. The 2015 holiday presentation of Silver Ships will be presented on recycled lumber castoffs from the construction of Schooner Diligence. Philly Seaport’s miniature ships were collected by Jacobus and Louisa Pierot during their travels in the late 20th century. The ships were gifted to the museum by Louisa in memory of her late husband.
Miniature Scenes and More by Ryan Monahan
What’s your earliest memory with miniatures?
Honestly, I think the earliest memory I have is visiting a family friend’s house where they had a scale model of their home. It blew my little mind; I recall running around checking if they included all the details like the garden hose or the house number… I really was fascinated. I had to be about 8 or 9 years old, I’m guessing.
How did you first get started making miniatures yourself?
Miniatures by Vilma’s Crafts
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How did you first get started making miniatures?
I started making miniatures when I was really young. I have always been interested in small things. I don’t quite recall the time when I started making miniatures myself, but I remember learning about polymer clay approximately two years ago, in 2013. If I remember correctly, my first small scale project was a toy box for a dollhouse, made from a cardboard toilet paper roll.
What’s your favorite type of miniature to make?
