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Built to Scale
The Bank of New York presents:
The World's Finest Transportation Model Masterpieces
June 24-October 29, 2006
If the best things come in small packages, we have over 90 sensational surprises in store for you. This season, between June 24 and October 29, the world's finest transportation model masterpieces- cars, boats, airplanes - will be on view in our Bendel Mansion Museum galleries in the exhibition Built to Scale: Auto, Plane & Boat Model Masterpieces. Curators Marshall Buck and Mickey Graham have masterminded this show, working with the world's most important producers and with Mikhail Bashmashnikov of Stamford.
"These one-of-a-kind, carefully customized, small edition models are as different from mass-produced replicas as an original painting is from a poster," explains Buck, who adds that the miniatures are exact replicas, in perfect proportion, including the smallest details. "Considering that some of the miniatures are merely inches long, these models are quite a feat." He says that the modelmakers succeeded in creating beauty and precision beyond all practical considerations "because they are passionate, painstaking, and driven. We are most fortunate to be able to display these pieces." We are also most fortunate to have attracted major support from The Bank of New York, which joins us in presenting Built to Scale: Auto, Plane & Boat Model Masterpieces. The show is also made possible, in part, by Creative Miniature Associates, Inc., Automotive Restorations, Inc., Tamiya, and Revell-Monogram.
Among the most significant models on view in Built to Scale are:
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The Titanic
DO NOT MISS! RMS Titanic scale 1:48 Made by Fine Art Models, Birmingham, Michigan This 1/48 scale model masterpiece is built from the ship's original plans and took longer to build than Titanic herself. This is actually the first builder's model of Titanic, as an original had never been built. The artisans of Fine Art Models created the model working hand in hand with the ship's original builders, Harland & Wolff. The hull is a high definition resin with complete plating. It includes more than 3,376,000 rivets. The decking is real wood, as is the deck furniture, which is crafted to exact proportions. The model weighs 1500 pounds. Its lighting is so complex that it required the installation of more than 8 miles of fiber optic cable. The Stamford Museum & Nature Center is extremely fortunate to be able to display this unique masterpiece as part of its Built to Scale exhibition. From Stamford the model will travel to Europe to be shown at several major cities, including Belfast ---where RMS Titanic was built--- London, Paris and Rome. |
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Cars
A one-of-a-kind, fully scratchbuilt model of a Maserati T-61 Birdcage, for which the entire inner frame work was constructed, and every single detail of this car was fabricated in miniature.
A Brass Era 1905 Samochod, the smallest fully scratch-built model in the exhibit; less than 3" long with working steering, suspension and folding convertible top.
A 166 MM Barchetta-Ferrari's first victory at Le Mans; even the dash gauges are 3-dimensional on this model.
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Airplanes
A Nieuport 11
A Beech Staggerwing
A spectacularly detailed Spitfire with numerous working parts
Scratch-built models of a Voisin and Bristol Box Kite
The one-off Bugatti Speed Record airplane
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Boats
A Ferrari-powered Hydroplane Racing Boat
A masterfully detailed one-off of the Reliance Sail Yacht
Several beautifully finished, detailed models of Chris Crafts
A Hinckley Picnic Boat
Sir Henry Shackleton's "Endurance," 1914 1/48 scale by Fine Art Models (USA) Collection of Fine Art Models Photo courtesy of Fine Art Models |
Built to Scale is presented as part of Stamford Museum's long tradition of developing exhibitions that focus on popular culture
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