Fascination of miniature designers in the western hobby

A passion for history and art

In our precious free time we often share moments with our families. But as performers in the living history scene, we then devote ourselves with dedication to our beloved western hobby. In this captivating world, we strive to experience North American cultural history as authentically as possible. Whether we put ourselves in the shoes of cowboys, trappers, soldiers of the North or South, settlers, Mexican revolutionaries or personalities of the American War of Independence era, we travel back in time and bring history to life.

In our hobby dedicated to an authentic past, we also find performers of indigenous groups representing various aspects of the native American population. These include, among others, the Iroquois, Sioux, Apache, Crow, Comanche and Cheyenne - just to name a few performers in our scene.

Research, authenticity and living history

The history of American settlement offers a fascinating and extensive range of historical representations for each of us. Once we decide on a particular character, we delve into the associated history. We adapt our clothing to the period and many of us even make authentic items ourselves. These meticulous accessories complete our overall portrayal - historically accurate weapons, as found in history books, are of course essential.

Our goal is to not only look authentic at events such as Councils, Authentic Weeks, Camps, Western-Days or other events, but also to talk with like-minded people about times long past and learn from each other.

This picture with the authentic living-history performers was taken in Beaver Creek Valley during our 2018 TRP camp.

The world of miniature designers

While we are presenting ourselves as actors of the Old West, there is another group of enthusiasts - the miniature designers. These talented artists devote themselves with dedication and expertise to creating unique works of art. Unlike us, they do not re-live history, but transfer their knowledge to small figures of 15mm, 28mm, 54mm, 75mm, 90mm or larger.

They breathe life into prefabricated parts made of artificial resin or pewter and create unique masterpieces. Each finished model is a sign of their craftsmanship and their attention to detail.

The works of the figurine masters

These already modeled parts are carefully assembled and painted by the miniature designers to ensure historical accuracy. Over time, each designer develops his own technique, which makes his works distinctive. The recognizability of each piece, therefore, often allows for conclusions regarding the master. However, to recognize this requires a certain expertise.

From the underlying paint to the last brushstroke, they place great emphasis on precision. The figures are presented in a detailed environment and bring the past to life.

The following miniatures were arranged and painted by Michael Volquarts. They are part of Chet McCay's collection and one-of-a-kind pieces, that are not for sale!

Diese waghalsige Szene trägt den Namen „Stampede“ und stammt vom Skulpteur Carl Reid. Bemalt hat dieses 75mm große Unikat Frank Konetzke von Frank Miniatures. Es ist ebenfalls ein unverkäufliches Einzelstück aus der Sammlung von Chet McCay.

An endless variety

Some miniature designers specialize in the Wild West, while others explore a range of eras and possible representations. The Old West in particular offers many motifs, from trappers and American Natives of various tribes, to figures from the French and Indian War, to scenes of the American Civil War era. But the possibilities don't stop there. In miniature design, simply anything is possible.

Here is a small example: Martin Götz, who did the painting and depiction of these figures, is dedicated not only to American history, but also to Canadian, Napoleonic and British history, among others.

Scenarios of history

Even if painting and decorating individual figures is already time-consuming, some miniature designers dare to portray entire scenes - the so-called diorama.

In this rather time-consuming arrangement of several figures to a scene, there is usually a story being told. In this snapshot often very much happens at once and it's worth to take a closer look at the artwork.

Such dioramas can be found, for example, at the German Pewter Figurine Museum at Plassenburg Castle in Kulmbach.

But also in the small but fine Museum for Military Tradition in Upper Franconia, in Weidenberg, you will find excellent masterpieces.

The museum director, Martin Götz, presents some of his works of art there. We have photographed the most beautiful for you - but for a closer look, you can not miss a personal visit; which, by the way, we can warmly recommend!

Sergeant Charles Ewart von „The Royal Scots Greys“ – Britische Artillerie 1809
(2^nd Dragoons) – erobert die Fahne vom fr. Inf. Rgt. bei Waterloo
Diorama: Bemalung und Darstellung – Martin Götz
(not for sale)

British artillery 1809
Diorama: painting and presentation - Rainer Freiberg
(not for sale)

The Marshal’s Office ca. 1880
Diorama: painting and presentation – Michael Volquarts
Collection of Chet McCay (not for sale)

Variety in the miniatures world

The range of such model figures is very wide and diverse. For almost every historical era there is an abundance of these artistic sculptures.

In Sondereditionen, wie „Glory of Rome“ wird die Glanzzeit des römischen Imperiums zum Vorschein gebracht. In weiteren Editionen sind Wikinger und die Tempelritter der Kreuzzüge vertreten. Die Vielfalt reicht von den Griechen über das Mittelalter bis zu den Samurai und Fantasie-Figuren.

There are numerous companies offering models in this industry, including Andrea Miniatures, Beneito Miniatures, Pegaso Models, Romeo Models, First Legion, King & Country, Hobby Boss, Italeri and Revell.

The offer of unpainted and painted figures is huge, and you can find almost everything to create your own miniatures fantasy world. In the store „Berliner Zinnfiguren“ you can buy around 23,000 complete figures and figure kits, as well as more than 31,000 model kits. Just take a look at their retail store or their online store.

Hadrian's Villa - Miniatures from renowned manufacturers

Hadrians Villa - miniatures from well-known manufacturersAnother first-class supplier of painted full figures can be found at hadriansvilla.de. Figurine and vehicle models from various well-known manufacturers are offered here, including:

1. King & Country
2. First Legion
3. Thomas Gunn Miniatures
4. John Jenkins Designs
5. W. Britains
6. Conte
7. Black Hawk
8. Figarti
9. The Collectors Showcase

The owner of Hadriansvilla is Marcus Heiß-Hasala. He is a passionate figurine collector himself. He has also been running his online store for many years, through which he offers an impressive selection of figures from the manufacturers mentioned at extremely fair prices. Simply visit his website or contact him personally.

You can also expect excellent service there: Marcus is always friendly, professional and helpful. His dedication and patience in fulfilling customers' wishes are truly admirable. We are therefore extremely pleased to draw your attention to him.

Toysoldiers of Scandinavia - miniatures for a good price

May we introduce you to another great address? TOYSOLDIERS OF SCANDINAVIA, to be found at toysoldiers.dk.

If you are looking for accessories, pre-assembled buildings, landscapes or even complete dioramas, Jakob Bredahl-Kjaer is the man for you. The range is extremely broad and all the models and dioramas shown in the pictures can be customized or created from scratch. Jakob will fulfill all your wishes.

With his expertise, friendliness and impressive value for money, he has won over satisfied customers. A visit to his website is definitely worthwhile.

Below you will find some of his impressive models, which we would like to present with his kind permission.

Respect to the artists

We have great respect for the creative energy of these miniature designers. In our blog posts, we present their works and provide insights into the fascinating world of miniatures. Our photographer Robert Neuber has taken most of the pictures and allows you to dive into this world.

We would like to introduce some of these talented artists and their work in another article. After talking to the masters, a few hand-painted unique pieces are for sale.

You can view them by following the link below:

We would like to thank all the contributors who made it possible to create this post. Your help and effort made this article possible.

We look forward to surprising you with further inspiring articles.

Stay tuned and have fun exploring the world of the designers of miniatures!

Chet McCay – Beaver Creek Pioneer