Cityscape Coffee Table Designed Like a Wave

Inspired by the movie Inception, Cyprus designer Stelios Mousarris created the ‘Wave Coffee Table.’ The sweeping curved table and cityscapeis made of wood & steel andthe structure of the table was 3D printing.  

Artist Alexandre Arrechea’s Building Sculptures

At first glance, these sculptures look as though they were extruded from a building-shaped play-doh toy. Then, you realized they are made of cold, hard steel. The snake-like buildings seem to unroll like a coiled fire hose. Artist  Alexandre Arrechea’s vision of the Met Life, CitiCorp, Empire State Building and Chrysler Building are represented. Building Collector reader Howie G. sent me a tip about this exhibit. For three months beginning March 1, 2013 through June 9, a public art series known as No Limit will line New York’s Park Avenue with 10 different sculptures some of which reach a height of 20 feet. The artist also makes metal bridges and buildings atop rotating tops. Arrechea's watercolors, video work and smaller sculptures will also be displayed at Phillips's Park Avenue gallery in New York in April. In case any building fans want to add some of these to their collection, all of the pieces are for sale – including those that weigh 12,000 pounds. View the video, below, about the artist and preparing for the exhibit. 

Architectural Hanukkah Menorah

The Jewish holiday Hanukkah is an eight-day Festival of Lights commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. Central to the holiday is the menorah. Architect Richard Meier designed a Hanukkah lamp for an exhibition at the Israel Museum entitled Nerot Mitzvah: Contemporary Ideas for Light in Jewish Ritual. This pewter menorah with architectural themes measures 8-1/2 x 14 x 2 inches. Meier wrote, "In the design of the Hanukkah lamp, I was trying to express the collective memory of the Jewish people. Each candleholder is an abstracted representation of an architectural style from significant moments of persecution in the history of the Jews. These are not intended as literal representations of specific events but rather as reminders of the common past and struggles that Jewish people have suffered and their resilience and strength that is so wonderfully captured by the Hanukkah story." An original of this menorah, in tin-coated copper, is in the permanent collection of The Jewish Museum. It has been reproduced in a limited edition of 500 units in pewter. Other menorah also have building and architect designs. A replica of the 15th-Century Great Synagogue in Toledo, Spain is made of resin and measures 15 x 9 x 6 inches. The white arches are portion of one of two remaining Synagogue buildings left in Toledo, once the capital of the thriving Jewish community of Spain. Another item of Judaica was designed by Heather Goldminc. The Jerusalem Village menorah holds Each candle within a small cityscape with the center building being the temple. Standing 12" long x 4" tall, the hand-painted ceramic menorah holds standard Chanukah candles.

Architectural Sculptures Made of Sugar

One lump or two? Artist Brendan Jamison takes a lot of lumps in order to sculpt and carve sugar cubes into architectural models. From castles to office buildings, he patiently stacks sugar cubes into skyscraper skylines.

Artistic Artistic Sand Castle Sculptures

Soaring sand skyscrapers and monumental mounds. This past summer, 40 artists from 9 different nations sculpted scenes made of sand in Blankenberge, Belgium. The annual sand sculpture festival’s theme this year was aptly-named 'Around the World.' A total of 171 scenes have been sculpted: 73 European, 43 Asian, 19 African, 17 North American, 10 South American and 9 Ocean scenes. Some 40 countries on six continents are represented in minuscule grain depicting world wonders, the most visited cultural monuments, and meet some of the greatest heroes of our history. Organizers of the event left nothing to chance for the delicate creations and set up many artworks under tents. Check out more creations in this photo gallery. I’ve written in the past about other sand structures.

Holiday Miniature Buildings

This is the traditional time of year for gingerbread houses, but sometimes architectural replicas are made of other unusual materials. George Washington’s estate, Mount Vernon, has been reproduced in gingerbread by former White House pastry chef Roland Mesnier. The five-foot-wide and two-foot-tall replica will be on display as part of the new Christmas at Mount Vernon event at the historic Virginia home. Not far away in D.C., the U.S. Botanic Garden creates miniature buildings with their annual model train exhibit. Not your run-of-the-mill train miniatures, these are replicas of D.C. landmarks made of plant-based natural materials. Buildings included are the White House, U.S. Capital and new this year is a miniature of the National Museum of the American Indian. A few years ago in London, Chinese artist Song Dong created a city of biscuits and sweets at Selfridges department store. The 12 metre sculpture was composed of 72,000 biscuits, cakes and sweets.

Totem Pole Souvenir Replicas

Last year for Thanksgiving, Scott D. wrote a series of posts about related souvenir buildings. He included the Pilgrim monument in Provincetown; Plymouth Rock souvenirs and even the town of Plymouth. I also wrote about historic Jamestown Virginia and miniature replicas there. This year, however, I had difficulty finding additional Thanksgiving-related souvenirs to write about. So, in honor of our Native American friends who helped the Pilgrims on the first Thanksgiving, let’s explore something iconic in their culture – the totem pole. There is a mini replica of the Totem pole at Pioneer Square in Seattle. The souvenir stands 4 inches high and was made for the BPOE (The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks), a 141-year-old fraternal lodge. On the back of the pole are the words, “Complements of Seattle Lodge No. 92 BPOE. “ The base reads, “Totem Pole Pioneer Square Seattle. Seattle Wantsyouvin 1915. The real tribal history of the Indian.” The final base panel has an elk’s head with the words “Cervus Alces” which means elk. I’ve seen another version with the front base panel depicting the head of the Indian Chief Seattle. Most monument replicas seem to be made with a copper/bronze finish, but some have been repainted. The souvenir totem pole has 6 faces and animals on the front. The real Pioneer Square Totem Pole has a storied history and not a very respectful one. This Totem was stolen from Native Americans. During the Klondike Gold Rush in the late 1800’s, Seattle was a center for travel to Alaska. In 1899, a group of prominent businessmen stole a 60-foot totem pole from a Tlingit village in Alaska and placed it in Pioneer Place Park. The totem pole stood there until an arsonist destroyed the pole in 1938. The city then sent the pieces back to the Tlingit tribe who carved a new one and gave it to Seattle (after finally getting paid for the one that was originally stolen). In addition to the totem pole, a wrought-iron Victorian pergola and a bust of Chief Seattle were added to the park in 1909.Native Americans of the Northwest Coast carved totem poles to document important events, family history, and to identify a family or a clan. The Seattle totem belonged to the Raven Clan (English surname Kinninook) and had been carved in about the year 1790 to honor a woman named Chief-of-All-Women who drowned in the Nass River while on a journey to visit an ailing sister. The top carving was that of a raven, which in Tlingit mythology did everything, knew everything, and seemed to be everywhere at once. In Seattle, the raven faced north up 1st Avenue. I have also seen totem pole replicas from Alaska and Canada produced in metal, resin, wood and stone. Do you know of other totem pole replicas?

Hand-Crafted Building Desk

Did you see the Architecture desk recently auctioned on eBay? Can you envision this wooden building desk in a library surrounded by miniature building replicas? Perhaps a few ash trays and pen holders in the shape of buildings sitting on it would look great. The Hand Crafted Wood and Brass and Leather Desk shaped like a large building features two drawers and three storage cabinets. Maitland-Smith furniture makers of Chapel Hill, N.C. designed and built the desk which measures 46" high x 66" wide x 30" deep. Sitting on top and built into the desk is an architectural sculpture which becomes a functional work of art. Details include brass, leather and columns. After 17 bids, it sold for $ 2,949. I found the furniture makers website, but didn’t see this desk anywhere. Perhaps it’s a new item? I did some additional research and found some similar building furniture. The Althorp Living History collection is furniture inspired by antiques at Althorp, the country estate the ancestral country estate of the Spencer family since the early 16th century. Located near Northamptonshire, England, the estate and house are open to the public during the summer months. All profits made are donated to the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. The estate was first opened to the public in 1953, by the 7th Earl Spencer, to mitigate against taxation. The furniture collection includes a desk and cabinet which replicate the mansion itself. A magnificent mahogany & brass mounted 'Althorp House' desk, the upper section in the form of Althorp, fitted with numerous hidden drawers and doors, the desk with a leather inset molded edge top fitted with brushing slides and three frieze drawers with Spencer crest handles on eight turned, reeded and tapering legs united by a solid under tier on brass capped peg feet Measuring 60 x 30 x 47 inches, this desk costs a whopping $12,450.00. An elegant George III mahogany 'Althorp House' cocktail cabinet or bar, whose upper portion features a finely-cast brass gallery of crossed sabres, above three cabinet doors enclosing glass and mahogany shelves, lattice windows and touch lights. The stand, with a cross banded top fitted with two leather inset brushing slides above two frieze drawers fitted with Spencer crest handles on square chamfered legs, is united by a concave undertier with a brass sabre gallery. This architectural cabinet measures 46 x 24 x 70 inches and is priced at $8,100.00

Human Hair Mini Building

As Halloween approaches, our thoughts turn to scary and hairy things. Werewolves, Wolverine, Sasquatch, Cousin It, Wookies – you know the type. In the past, I’ve written about other people who patiently create miniature buildings from a variety of materials: Wooden cities, Sugar skylines, Chocolate carvings, Jell-O buildings and Sand sculptures. But now I’ve seen everything. A Beijing hairdresser wanted to create something unique to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Communist China's founding. So naturally, he built a replica of the buildings and monuments around Tiananmen Square made entirely of human hair. Huang Xin has completed the Monument to the People's Heroes and is putting the finishing touches to the Gate of Heavenly Peace or Tiananmen, complete with a miniature portrait of former Chairman Mao (the only portion not made of hair.) About 11 kg of hair and 500 yuan ($71) worth of hair dye and other supplies were used to build the Gate of Heavenly Peace replica, which is about a meter long. It took Huang days to draw a simple blueprint and five months to gather enough hair to create the landmark. Instead of throwing away customers' hair after a cut, Huang Xin sweeps it up, washes and dyes the clumps and converts them into a substitute for bricks, wood or any other material needed for his hairy artwork. "Some customers are supportive, some are not. Some just don't believe it's possible to make models of such huge architecture using such a delicate material as human hair," Huang told Reuters. Huang has also made replicas of the Bird's Nest Olympic Stadium, the Olympic torch and ancient Chinese artifacts. It generally takes months to scrape together enough hair for one large replica, which requires dozens of tubes of dye to change the dried hair to the desired color. Eventually, he would like to bring his job and his hobby together - creating images of his customers using their own hair, which he believes would last longer than photographs. "I am planning to do portraits of customers using their own hair. From a haircut I would get both short and long hair. So technically, I would be able to make flat works, that would, for example, resemble photographs," he said. Have you seen other miniature building hand made of unusual materials?

History Chess and Recession Souvenirs

The history of the last Century has been compaired to a chess game: a tournament of opposing political systems, ideologies, brands and artisitic movements. Boym Partners does it again with an unique take on a chess board and miniature buildngs. Each figure in History Chess alludes to an icon of last Century’s storied history. From a sinking Titanic to the falling World Trade Center. The Space Shuttle, Unabomber cabin even a Coke bottle and VW Beetle are included. 32 different hand-carved wooded chess pieces are set on a 4 by 4-foot board. This one must be pricey because the ‘prices is available upon request.” Recession Souvenirs are described on the Boym site as the first casualties of a world-wide downturn – architecture project. Canceled or put “on hold” these five potential skycrapers are reduced to tabletop size. The set includes Burj al Alam in Dubai, the Russian Tower in Moscow, Busan Lotte Tower in Korea Herzong & de Meuron’s condo tower in NY and the controversial Cheesegrater intended for London. The miniature skyscrapers are hand-cast in colorful resin. They are available on the Boym website for $95 each.

Astronomers Monument

Towering above the lawn at the north entrance of the Griffith Observatory in Los Angels stands a white monument which pays homage to six of the greatest astronomers of all time: Hipparchus , Nicholas Copernicus, Galileo Galilei, Johannes Kepler, Isaac Newton and William Herschel. Their names are engraved under a carved statue of eah of the astronomers. An 8.5-inch-tall resin miniature replica of the Astronomers Monument is available from the Observatory’s gift shop. The real Astronomers Monument is a concrete sculpture designed and executed by sculptor L. Archibald Garner in 1934.The monument is a product of the great depression, when New Deal initiatives created federally funded work programs to employ skilled workers in many fields at a time when they would otherwise remain idle and without income. One of the first of these programs, the Public Works of Art Project (PWAP), began in December 1933. Soon thereafter, in cooperation with the Los Angeles Park Commission, PWAP commissioned a sculpture project on the grounds of the new Observatory (which was under construction). Using a design by local artist Archibald Garner and materials donated by the Women's' Auxiliary of the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, Garner and five other artists sculpted and cast the concrete monument and figures. Each artist was responsible for sculpting one astronomer; one of the artists, George Stanley, was also the creator of the famous Academy Award "Oscar" statuette. The only "signature" on the Astronomers Monument is "PWAP 1934" referring to the federal agency which funded the project and the year it was completed. If you missed it, you’ll find my post about the Griffith Observatory and it’s building replica here. The L.A. Times published a package about the Griffith Observatory's repening with a sunrise video, 360-degre view, photo galleries and interative map.

Tactile Models & Maps

Isn’t it great when you discover the name and reason for something you’ve noticed from time to time? The 3-D maps I’ve written about in the past are actually called tactile models or tactile maps. They are not just to help sighted visitors get a better geographic understanding of an area, but also to allow blind people to experience the architecture. Scott D. sent me some links to other maps and I found even more recently. Bronze is a popular material for tactile maps because it sustains ware of constant touching, threats of vandalism and effects of exposure to ocean salt air. The Dog Rose Trust has been involved in the production of tactile scale models for many years. While these models have Braille and clear lettering on them, they are for everyone to use. People who are blind and visually impaired say that a tactile model gives them the best idea of a building or environment. At the Cabrillo National Monument near the city of San Diego, tactile model of the Old Point Loma Lighthouse and outbuildings enables visitors to experience the lighthouse area as it once was. The second set of bronze tactile models installed interprets the Old Point Loma Lighthouse and its setting in San Diego Bay. These models were installed in a plaza with an audio station at the end of the walk leading to the lighthouse. A 3-D historical marker is a miniature of the Top of the Ocean Restaurant which was an ocean liner shaped restaurant on the Tacoma, Washington waterfront from 1946 through 1977. The marker is mounted below a replica of the building at the site where it stood.

Terminal Tower in Cleveland

A variety of souvenir buildings of the Terminal Tower have been produced over the years including paper weights, bookends, pen holders and wooden models. The Terminal Tower bookends are cast iron and stand just over 8 inches tall and a set recently sold on ebay for $255. Reader Scott D. sent me this great link about miniature models of the Terminal Tower. Some of these models were hand-made by fans of the skyscraper. Earlier, I wrote about topics which included Terminal Tower versions including souvenirs with pens and buildings with forced perspective. The real Terminal Tower is a landmark skyscraper located on Public Square in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. It was built during the skyscraper boom of the 1920s and 1930s, and was once the second-tallest building in the world. Originally built to serve as an office building atop the city's rail station, Union Terminal, the the Beaux-Arts structure rises 52-floors with a height of 708 ft. and rests on 280 foot caissons. Designed by the firm of Graham, Anderson, Probst & White and opened in 1928. Like the Empire State building, the observation deck was originally intended to be used by Goodyear for future dirigible travel between Cleveland and New York City. The deck was planned to be the terminal, but docking was ruled unfeasible so it was used as an overlook and tourist attraction. On a clear day, visitors can see 30 miles from downtown Cleveland. Now called the Tower City Center, the real structure houses offices, rapid transit stations, 100 shops, six restaurants, a movie theater, amphitheater, fitness center and two hotels. Have you seen other souvenir building versions of the Terminal Tower?

Copenhagen Mermaid Statue

The Little Mermaid will soon be swimming to China. One of Denmark's top tourist attractions, the statue of Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale mermaid character, will be sent to China for the Shanghai 2010 World Expo. When the plan to send the statue to China emerged last year, it created a heated debate in Denmark. Some politicians have said six months was too long for one of Copenhagen's landmarks to be away from the Scandinavian country. Sitting on a rock at the entrance of Copenhagen harbor since 1913, she draws an estimated 1 million visitors a year. The Danish pavilion, called Welfairytales, at the World Expo will portray Denmark as an environmentally friendly country by combining the old with the new -- fairy tales and welfare. The sculpture, which sits on a granite block in Copenhagen's port, sits only 5.45-feet tall and was created in 1913 by Edvard Eriksen. The Hans Christian Andersen fairytale that bears her name was first published in 1837 and has since been turned into a Walt Disney cartoon. It tells the story of a young mermaid who is willing to give up everything for the love of a prince. Although the little mermaid statue led a quiet life well into the 1950s, she has since received ignominious treatment on a number of occasions. She has been doused in paint several times, decapitated by a group of artists in 1964, blown off her rock in 2003 and dressed in a Muslim headscarf two years ago in apparent protest at the prospect of Turkish European Union membership. Souvenirs of Little Mermaid mostly all have either a metal or plastic figure attached to an actual stone. Other versions include older bronze miniatures and fine hand-painted porcelain replicas.

Architecture Costumes

This is the time of year for costumes and carnivals. New Orleans has it Mardi Gras. Both Venice and Rio de Janeiro hold elaborate costumed carnivals. I found some interesting examples of architectural costumes. From a person dressed as the Statue of Liberty in a public park to Architect Philip Johnson featured in a print advertising wearing a hat in the shape of PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pa. which he designed. During a 1931 Beaux-Arts ball, architects dressed as the buildings they designed including William van Alen, architect of the Chrysler Building, who donned a towering hat for the occasion. Evidently, many American architecture schools hold similar costume balls. A fashion model strutted down the runway with twin capital domes. Other collectors groups such as the Salt & Pepper Shakers Club hold costume contests during their conventions. Perhaps the Souvenir Building Collectors Society (SBCS) could do the same? What do you think? Write your thoughts in the ‘comments’ link below.

Lincoln Statues & Monuments

I believe there are hundreds of statues commemorating President Lincoln around the United States, but how many different souvenirs have been made of those statues? Statue replica seems to represent Abe from a boy through adulthood and from Illinois to Gettysburg. A while back, I wrote also about a mystery Lincoln monument which is either lost or destroyed. Let’s not forget about Mt. Rushmore souvenirs which have been made in almost every size and material. I found this web site which has links and photos of Lincoln statues in almost every state in the country. In the next Lincoln post, I’ll explore other buildings and souvenirs commemorating Lincoln.

Model Cities

Most of us are content with buying miniature buildings, but others build entire miniature cities from scratch. Artist Michael Chesko hand carved city modes from balsa wood. Building Collector reader Scott D. sent me this link he found about another web site featuring city models. A blog named Tinselman, authored by Robyn Miller, wrote about models similar to the “3-D maps” I’ve posed about in the past. Spending countless hours toiling with Xacto blades and fingernail files to shape the balsa wood into miniature skyscrapers, Chesko first created an imaginary city named Britannica. He then focused on a scale miniature of Midtown Manhattan which took over 2000 hours to complete and measures 36" x 30” with a 1:3200 scale. Chesko describes himself as an eccentric mix of engineer, model maker, amateur cartographer and artist. His wooden cityscapes have been exhibited in various places in New York City including the Skyscraper Museum.

WTC in Gold and Diamonds

Rare souvenir building replicas are rare because only a few were made or just a few survived. This building is more than just rare, it’s both unique and expensive. As a tribute to the citizens of New York City, Indian designer Nayna Mehta created a special World Trade Center building replica as her own way of expressing her grief about the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Nayna and her team created the towers using the lost-wax casting technique and made each of the surrounding towers by hand. The "Twin Towers" are made of 18kt. yellow gold which represents purity. Inside each tower are four solid pillars of 18kt. gold measuring 185 mm in height. The piece's base and surrounding structures, including North & South Plaza buildings, the U.S. Customs office and hotel, are also made of 18kt. yellow gold. All together, the gold weight totals almost 48 ounces. The windows, all 110 floors on each tower, are made of 0.02 carat, 1.4 mm princess cut diamonds with excellent and uniform color/clarity grades. Mehta, a graduate of the Gemological Institute of America, designed and created the miniature building which took 25 weeks, 38 artists, designers and technicians to complete. As a final touch, she engraved a poem, written with her family, into the base of the piece where the Towers courtyard once was:

Those innocent souls, we never forgot
United us all in a single breath.

We shed not tears, only our doubts,
Vowed to destroy all vicious clouts.

Stronger we rose, with a will so bold,
As hard as diamonds and as pure as gold.

Victorious we emerged, its plain to see,
So come join this anthem and sing with me.

God Bless America

U.S. Capital Visitor Center

After years of delay and millions over budget, the Visitor Center at the U.S. Capital opened to the public recently. I went to check it out and see what might be of interest to building collectors and architecture fans. The center was constructed underground on the east side of the building so as not to detract from the appearance of the Capitol and of the grounds designed by Frederick Law Olmsted in 1874. At nearly 580,000 square feet on three levels, The CVC is the largest project in the Capitol’s 215-year history and is approximately three quarters the size of the Capitol itself. Its an enormous, granite-lined open space with exhibition halls, theaters, gifts shops and a restaurant. Of interest to architectural fans include the touchable, scale-model, cross-section of the Capitol Dome with views of the exterior and interior structure. A large replica of the Statue of Freedom, which stands on the top of the U.S. Capital dome, is a centerpiece. A series of 3-D models display the changes to Capital Hill from a forested area, to the building of the capital, changes to the mall and then the appearance of the Supreme Court and Library of Congress buildings. The two gift shops were a disappointment however. There were only a few items of interest to building collectors where a blown-glass capital dome ornament, large white resin dome bookends and a variety of white resin capital replicas.

Art: MVSEVM and Movie Palace

Artist David Beck creates mixed-media pieces of interest to building collectors and architectural fans. Beck was commissioned to create MVSEVM to commemorate the reopening of the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C in 2006. When closed, the model takes the shape of the Old Patent Office Building where the museum now resides, but it opens to reveal miniature artifacts and artworks as well as drawers containing smaller models. The size for the miniature building is approximately 32 x 55 x 50 in. (81.3 x 139.7 x 127.0 cm). Another Beck sculpture is named Movie Palace. Its an elaborate kinetic sculpture that combines Hollywood escapism with the innocent pleasures of windup toys. Beck remembers movie going as a social experience that is disappearing from American culture today. Crafting this lost world in miniature creates the kind of magic that films once had, when they transported audiences to distant lands and improbable adventures. The building combines the Renaissance, Moorish, and Egyptian styles that movie houses shamelessly borrowed in the good old days. Reliefs on the outside of the dome represent film noir, Westerns, musicals and other genres from Hollywood's golden age. Inside, animated figures talk and eat popcorn while King Kong swats at biplanes from the mast of the Empire State Building. Beck chose a variety of materials to create Movie Palace including horn and bone. The shining dome has been water gilded. Tiny people in the audience balance drinks and popcorn as they try to find the best seats. The piece measures 84 x 40 x 22 in. (213.4 x 101.6 x 55.9 cm). David Beck also created L'Opera. Do know of other artists creating architectural pieces?