The Year in Miniatures!
I'm excited to share with you a recap of the BIGGEST little stories to hit the Miniature World in 2023 from mainstream media news and entertainment, museum and gallery installations, the show circuit and more... so let's get to it! (Below: Aba Amuquandoh, host of Best in Miniature)
There were a number of mainstream print and digital news stories published about our little world in 2003. In May, The New York Times took us "Inside the World of Small Objects" and featured show promoter Tom Bishop...
...along with a number of awesome artists presenting at the annual International Tom Bishop Show in Chicago (below: folks from Itty Bitty Mini Mart)
In early November, author Scott Huler wrote a terrific story in Esquire about the "Weird and Wonderful World of Miniatures" which featured miniaturist Bob Off and talked about how Miniatures are having its moment.
And finally, later that month The Wall Street Journal took on the subject with this piece and wrote about how newcomers are entering the scene with cash to spend on the tiny!
In early November, author Scott Huler wrote a terrific story in Esquire about the "Weird and Wonderful World of Miniatures" which featured miniaturist Bob Off and talked about how Miniatures are having its moment. And finally, later that month The Wall Street Journal took on the subject with this piece and wrote about how newcomers are entering the scene with cash to spend on the tiny!
Commercial media, entertainment and fashion has also covered Miniatures over the past year in a BIG way and included the kick off of Season 3 of Best in Miniature, the hit reality-based competition show about making miniatures. We also saw the arrival of the Small is Beautiful Art exhibition in New York City (after debuting in London and Paris) which featured dozens of miniature artists from across the globe with an entertaining approach to showcasing the tiny!
...and finally, Miniatures were highlighted in an episode of PBS Craft in America just last month and featured an interview with master miniaturist and IGMA Fellow Mark Murphy.
...oh, and miniatures also made it BIGLY into the fashion world with the launch of the designer dollhouse handbag presented by Jaden Smith at the Fall 2023 Louis Vuitton fashion show.
In major museum and gallery news, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston opened its "Tiny Treasures: The Magic of Miniatures" exhibition (through February 2024) featuring miniatures in a number of different mediums from diorama art, portraiture, pottery and more...
The National Trust Queen Victoria Museum and Gallery presented Miniature Worlds: The Magic of Small Scale Making co-curated by and featuring work by Joshua Smith. A special Meet the Miniaturist broadcast is available to watch here.
And finally, the National Museum of Toys and Miniatures in Kansas City premiered a new miniature art gallery space within the museum featuring rotating miniature art exhibitions.
The space was designed and built by Los Angeles based miniaturist Chris Toledo along with help from the iconic Bill Robertson.
In addition to presenting and lecturing at library and arts organizations this year, D. Thomas Miniatures (me) was thrilled to curate and host my first miniature flower show at the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers, New York with the help of many awesome miniaturist who contributed their talents and treasures to the exhibition. More here and to view my virtual tour hosted by the museum.
I was also able to host a number of mini movers and shakers in the Miniatures World on my Meet the Miniaturist broadcast - you can catch all of the previous broadcasts on my YouTube channel here. (Work below by the very talented Hannah Lemon from Hannah Lemon Art here.)
And finally, I was thrilled to host a number of estate sales and auctions to help find happy homes for some of the treasures crafted by artisans from all over the world belonging to diligent and passionate collectors (Below: work by Nell Corkin).
It's been a terrific year for the miniatures world and I am excited to be just a small part of it...for more 2023 news and stories, head over to (and follow!) my Facebook page here - you can also check or check out my blog posts here. Make sure you're signed up for my email updates here. and of course you can follow me on all my social media channels here.
Thank YOU for all of your continued support and encouragement for the content I bring, for all the follows, likes and comments, you make what I do love it even more each day...stay tuned for more in '24!
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