miniature

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Art

30 Hand-Cranked Machines Comprise Amusing Series of Miniatures by Artist Federico Tobon

Similar to Lalese Stamps’s personal challenge to create 100 ceramic mug handles, a Los Angeles-based artist has crafted an amusing series of hand-cranked automatons in just 30 days. Federico Tobon, of wolfCat Workshop, used popsicle sticks, metal clips, paper, and scrap material for One Month of Small Machines, a four-week-long project that generated different, moveable figures and animals each day. “The A-HA moment from these projects was when I discovered that using paper gives these machines a very organic feel,” he said. “Some of them would look very stiff and mechanical otherwise.”

Since November 2017 when Tobon created these miniature apparatuses, he’s taken on more month-long challenges, which he often shares on Instagram. Check out the full collection on his site or by watching the video below. (via Laughing Squid)

 

Design

Barbie and Ken Get Relatable Quarantine Makeovers in Humorous Miniature Sets

Barbies have garnered attention for years because of their unrealistic proportions, lack of diversity, and gendered activities. Despite some noteworthy changes, Tonya Ruiz, a former model turned toy designer, thought the usual selection of lavishly dressed and accessorized dolls could use another update that’s a little more timely. “When the quarantine started and I saw a couple of funny pandemic Barbies, I thought that I should make a Barbie that everyone could relate to. I created the quarantine starter pack: curvy doll in stretchy pants,” Ruiz says about the self-inspired doll that spurred the makeovers in a recent video.

Known as Grandma Gets Real, Ruiz has been creating parodic sets that highlight some of the most relatable quarantine activities. There’s a quarreling couple that has a plethora of cleaning products, a cast-iron of eggs, and a just-out-of-reach guide detailing how to divvy up chores. A scrubs-wearing nurse is complete with a miniature lab coat, X-rays, and thermometer, while bread-baking Barbie is covered in a white dusting of flour.

Ruiz shares updates of her toy spoofs on Instagram, in addition to close-ups of her miniature essentials, snacks, and quarantine activities. You also might enjoy these fake toys deposited on store shelves by Obvious Plant. (via designboom)

 

Design

Mid-Century Modern Perches Offer a Minimalist Haven for Backyard Birds

Accented with wood-slatted porches and bright water dishes, these mid-century modern birdhouses by Douglas Barnhard give avian neighbors with particular aesthetic sensibilities a reason to flock home. Barnhard, who’s behind the Santa Cruz-based company Sourgrassbuilt, builds the succulent-studded abodes from bamboo, cedar, teak, and glossy laminate. With clean lines and angular features, they emulate the architecture pioneered by Joseph Eichler, Frank Lloyd Wright, and the Bauhaus.

To offer your feathered companions a modern upgrade, see which works Barnhard has available on Etsy, and check out the home he renovated into a miniature art gallery on Instagram. (via Apartment Therapy)

 

Art

A Tiny Lizard Attends Miniature Gallery Opening to See 'American Gecko' and 'The Birth of Gecko'

The Gecko Museum’s opening only had one visitor to consider its most prized pieces: a mango-loving crested gecko that goes by The Mayor. Arriving around 7 p.m., the nocturnal lizard visited his personal gallery earlier this week, stopping to contemplate “American Gecko” and “The Birth of Gecko.” Dallas-based Jill Young, who both painted and curated the miniature museum’s permanent collection as part of a humorous quarantine activity, told Hyperallergic that “The Mayor was particularly fond of my ‘American Gothic’ spoof, ‘American Gecko.’ I guess he’s in an American Modernism phase.”

Similar to the brothers, Pandoro and Tiramisù, that disregarded signs requesting they not chew on the furniture or artworks in The Gerbil Museum, The Mayor ignored the red rope cordoning off the artworks. “I now understand that The Mayor’s relationship to art is a necessarily tactile one, which I can appreciate,” Young said. Despite her gecko’s unconventional approach to art, though, Young hopes to see the small-scale trend continue. “Every pet deserves a cultural outing,” she said.

Art

Two Curious Gerbils Visit (and Chew on) a Miniature Art Museum Made by Their Quarantined Owners

Stay-home orders around the world have inspired people to fill their time creatively—think the recreations of well-known artworks and “Coronavirus Tourism Bureau” posters we mentioned last week. But rather than fashion a mock art exhibition for themselves, this London couple thought a little bit smaller. Filippo and Marianna created The Gerbil Museum, a miniature gallery space for their two 9-month-old gerbils, Pandoro and Tiramisù.

Complete with cardboard benches and scribbled museum labels, the wood-floored gallery houses humorous versions of iconic works. The couple told Hyperallergic that at first they hoped to paint miniature productions of more obscure pieces but decided that portraying  “The Kiss,” “Girl with a Pearl Earring,” and other classics with gerbil subjects would be funnier.

As you can tell, though, Pandoro and Tiramisù lack museum etiquette and have been chewing on some of the furniture, despite the sign that advises restraint. (via Hyperallergic)

As promised, this is the full video of our gerbils visiting the museum. No gerbils or gallery assistants were harmed in the making of this. from r/aww

Craft Photography

Derrick Lin's Dioramas Contrast the Bustle of Agency Life with Peaceful Office-Supply Scenes

Seattle-based photographer Derrick Lin (previously) constructs miniature worlds that serve as a direct contrast to the stacks of books and other office staples like paperclips and pencils they’re surrounded by. Often showing life’s more relaxing and sublime moments, each scene is complete with tiny figures and their possessions as they pass along a sidewalk lined with cherry blossom trees, occupy a packed airport terminal, and sit on the floor of a messy living room. Because Lin assembles his little scenarios on his tabletop, some of his shots even feature a coffee mug in the background.

The photographer tells Colossal that in recent years, he’s started to consider the more subtle emotions of his daily reality “as a single working professional living in a major city.”

In addition to humor and whimsy, I started to pay more attention to topics around loneliness, mental health, and kindness. I strive to depict and spotlight on the kind of thoughts we typically reserve for ourselves. My photography loosely reflects what I personally experience and what I see around me. What continues to amaze me is the messages I receive from my followers about how my little project resonates with them and brings them joy and calmness.

To keep up with Lin’s office supply-based dioramas, follow him on Instagram, and check out the prints he has available on Society6.