Miniature art stands tall at Las Vegas expo
When Nicholas Bachmann stepped foot inside the MiniCon expo Saturday at the Gold Coast, he knew he would find some interesting small items, but one in particular captured his attention.
“I saw a mini Rubik’s Cube that worked,” Bachmann said. “I’m not even kidding — it was a quarter-inch-by-quarter-inch Rubik’s Cube that functioned. You could solve it. I couldn’t believe it was real.”
Enter the world of miniature artisans, where creators seem to be able to make almost anything, from small pieces of furniture made of wood or clay to a lifelike sweet potato so small, it would look tiny if placed on a quarter.
Show organizers — it’s put on by the International Market of Miniature Artisans — said they expected close to 600 attendees Saturday inside the Gold Coast’s Arizona Ballroom.
At around noon, the room was packed with hobbyists old and young. Some looked at detailed clay flower fixtures while others marveled at 1-inch books, classics like John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men” or Ernest Hemingway’s “The Old Man and the Sea.”
Organizer Lisa Hicks, who lives in Las Vegas part time, says the hobby of collecting miniatures — where collectors create their own small living spaces and unique worlds — has grown over the past few years.
“I think during COVID, many more artisans came on board,” Hicks said. “It had been sort of a niche thing for a long time.”
‘Made for social media’
Hicks said she thinks the popularity of social media has also given life to the hobby. In some ways, it’s perfect for social media.
“A bunch of miniature reels boomed on TikTok,” Hicks said, referring to the popular video-sharing social media platform. “This is 1,000 percent made for social media.”
A check of the “Tiny Kitchen” account on TikTok shows it has over 2 million followers.
Geneva Marquez had one of the more popular booths at the expo Saturday afternoon. She has an art studio in downtown Las Vegas called G.E.M. Artistry, which sells life-sized pieces of art, but she also has been dabbling in the world of miniatures.
She specializes in urban-centric pop art — think Andy Warhol mixed with a tagging crew — and her booth Saturday displayed tiny cans of Red Bull and framed portraits of Elvis Presley, both smaller than an average man’s thumb.
“I’ve been a miniature collector since I was very young, but I just got into making pieces in the past year or so,” Marquez said. “You walk around here and you see the smiles on faces. People are fascinated by the scale, just with things being so minimized, it gets people excited.”
A group for local miniature artisans
With the international organization for artisans, there’s also a local group, Las Vegas Miniature Enthusiasts. Las Vegas native Corena Wickett was interested in miniatures and dolls as a girl, but became more involved later as an adult.
She became involved with Las Vegas Miniature Enthusiasts about 20 years ago. As a club, Wickett said, members mostly concentrate on 1-inch scale pieces.
They’ll make pieces together. Sometimes, members will work together to create a larger themed space. In all, about two dozen people are in the group, ranging in age, Wickett said, from 11 up to 80.
“You get to create your own world and that’s really fun,” Wickett said. “You also get to learn how things work and learn about illusion. I also love learning about history. I can learn about something from the 1800s and learn more about how people lived back then.”
Bachmann, who lives in Minnesota and works in the board game industry, bought a few pieces for his personal collection, including a tiny skate, er, fingerboard.
He said what he appreciates most about the world of miniature collecting is how much time artists put into their creations.
“I think it’s really endearing to know that somebody poured hours and hours of time into something that might be 1 inch big,” he said. “We live in very fast society now, so seeing people take so much time on something, there’s something about that.”
Contact Bryan Horwath at bhorwath@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BryanHorwath on X.
