D. Thomas Miniatures... IN THE NEWS!
ESQUIRE
November 20, 2023
Scott Huler
"Well, lockdown and TikTok, according to Darren Scala of D. Thomas Fine Miniatures, which skews toward Off-level fine-art miniatures, boasting more than 130,000 Instagram followers and a YouTube channel that features interviews with miniature artisans. According to Scala, the explosion started before COVID on Reddit, Pinterest, and especially Instagram, where miniaturists can share images of their work, teach and inspire one another, and swoon. Miniatures “allow you to see objects in a different way,” he said. “It makes you sort of super focus, takes you away from yourself and makes you feel something.” That illusion, the sense of elsewhere: “the illusion that there is something behind that door.” You can do that in a painting or a full-size sculpture, but it’s not the same. With a miniature, “You have to go like this,” he said, craning. “You have to move to get the treat, and then, you know. You have the possibility.” And while Scala shows off mostly higher-end miniatures—“fine” miniatures in the argot, the artisanal furniture and objects that run in the hundreds of dollars per piece—once you’re online, you’ll find that as miniatures have spread, so has their subject matter. A decade ago, the focus was stately homes. Not anymore. Read more here.
THE GUARDIAN
August 8, 2023
by Nicole Cooley
"More often than not, today’s miniature houses and furnishings don’t fit the 19th-century Victorian style commonly associated with “dollhouse”. As Darren Scala, owner of D Thomas Fine Miniatures, who coined the hashtag #rethinkdollhouse, likes to say: “This is not your grandmother’s dollhouse.”
Not incidentally, millennials are the demographic now most engaged in online miniature worlds, a place where they can easily own a home. How do they imagine it? The younger generation of miniacs is inspired by contemporary interior design from the 1950s to the present. Darren Scala explained to me: “The move to the current mini home trends is so much about this new generation making it all their own, expressing themselves in a new way based on their own likes dislikes and what’s actually available to them since there is so much more out there for them than what older generations had, which was only the Victorian style.” That is, so much more available in the miniature world, not the actual world in which we live.
Read the full piece here:
RIVERTOWN'S ENTERPRISE
Westchester County, NY
June 16, 2023
Tiny Doors of Dobbs Ferry
by Kris DiLorenzo
“Sharp-eyed strollers on the Old Croton Aqueduct trail between Dobbs Ferry and Irvington may spot a tiny red door, a teeny-weeny office, a Hobbit-style house, a unique version of a kaleidoscope, and a child-sized replica of the stone ventilators that punctuate the historic path."
Click here for more
The Rivertowns Enterprise
Westchester County, New York
December 4, 2020
TV Showdown Showcases Talent for Tiny
by Jackie Lupo
Darren T. Scala of Yonkers and May Burnett of Dobbs Ferry are about to prove that miniatures are ready for the big time. Tonight (Dec. 4) at 9 p.m., the pair will be pitted against two other teams on a new four-part HGTV series, "Biggest Little Christmas Showdown.” Their challenge is to create a miniature structure, furnished with tiny objects, based on the theme "A Charles Dickens Christmas “miniature
Scala said that to capture the judges' imagination, their design had to have a unique concept - not the typical "Ebenezer Scrooge's office" that the producers' prompt might suggest. "We wanted it to be whimsical and magical," he said. "So, we did a fair amount of research on Dickens himself, his writing, his whole gestalt, creating a fictional story that was our own and that aligned with the theme.”
Click here for full transcription
Journal News/LoHud
Westchester County New York
June 2018
Tiny and Provocative Art at YoHo Studio
by Michelle Falkenstein
“If the word “miniatures” conjures up images of tiny porcelain dollies pouring tea into miniscule teacups, an exhibition in Yonkers is about to change that...."
Click here for the online article
New York Magazine
September 2017
The Everything Guide to Mini Mania
by Katie Schnieder
“There’s a photo on @dailymini, an Instagram account dedicated to teeny-tiny replicas of everyday objects, of a postage-stamp-size bag of M&Ms spilling over with chocolates, each smaller than a grain of quinoa...."
Click image to read the article!
ArtNet News
June 2017
These Artists are Leading a Miniature Rebellion
by Sarah Cascone
“Dollhouses against Donald Trump? It’s not as ridiculous as it might seem. An upcoming show, “WEE#RESIST,” sees 12 miniature artists banding together to address cultural and political issues in an adorable, small-scale rebellion."
Click image to read the article!
Westchester Business Journal
April 2017
The Big Day Preserved in Mini Mementos
by Jena A. Butterfield
“The bride’s wedding dress is a strapless confection of lace and tulle with a fitted bodice and a flowing train that’s been painstakingly stitched and detailed just for her by an artisan in Italy".
Click image to read the article!
WAG Magazine
April 2017
The Big Day Preserved in Mini Mementos
by Jena A. Butterfield
“The bride’s wedding dress is a strapless confection of lace and tulle with a fitted bodice and a flowing train that’s been painstakingly stitched and detailed just for her by an artisan in Italy".
Click image to read the article!
DollHouse Miniatures Magazine
April 2017
Your Home in Miniature
by Donald Morcone for D. Thomas Fine Miniatures
“From the study of paleontology to the creation of architectural miniatures: the lifelong artitic journey Gerard Klein Hofmeijer."
New York Times
Fashion & Style
May 2016
Miniacs Live in a Small, Small World
by Abby Ellin
“Miniatures of all kinds are huge among young adults, who are rethinking dollhouse,” said Darren Scala, the owner of D. Thomas Fine Miniatures, in Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y., and a trustee of the International Guild of Miniature Artisans. “It’s about a return to the physical, being able to touch and handle and actually play with something tactile.”
Click in image to read the article!
Westchester Magazine
March 2016
32 Shops We Love: New Notable and Niche Retail Gems!
"The underappreciated art form of miniatures appears larger than life at this new retail store, gallery and exhibition space. With a passion for miniatures since childhood, Brooklyn-born artist Darren Thomas Scala amazes with his collection of artisan dollhouses and top quality collectibles catering to both the lifelong mniature enthusiasts and the newly interested hobbiest. "
Dollhouse Miniatures Magazine
March 2016
Nybelwyck Hall, Hudson River Museum Yonkers, NY
by Donald Morcone for D. Thomas Fine Miniatures
"Mr. Scala frequently presents the tale of the Van Nybelwycks and the story of its creation to museum visitors, miniature enthusiasts, and students of the Victorian era of decorative arts."
Miniature Collector Magazine
March 2016
Gallery Feature: Natasha Beshenkovsky
"The centerpiece of the exhibition, "Natasha Beshenkovsky: Still Life in Miniature" was "Kitchen Delft" which depicts an interor scene inspired by 17the century painter Peter de Hooch.
Rivertown's Enterprise
December 4, 2015
by Jackie Lupo
"The Hudson River Museum pulls out all the stops when it comes to decorating its Victorian-era home, Glenview, for the holidays. Its intricately carved mantelpieces, ornate staircases and many nooks and crannies are lavished with greenery, glitter, ribons and ornaments.
Dollhouse Miniatures Magazine
December 2015/January 2016
"Come and experience a life's journey expressed through the fine miniatures within the master artistry of Natasha Beshenkovsky."
by Donald Morcone
WAG Magazine
Westchester NY
December, 2015
"For Louise Krasniewicz, it's a small world after all...."
The Current/WHOH-TV
Hastings-on-Hudson NY
November, 2015
"In our tiny little village, down a tiny little alley, sits a tiny little shop, that's making, ironically, a big splash in the world of tiny art.....part craft shop and part art gallery and packing an enormous punch when it comes to the wow factor."
Westchester Magazine
Westchester County, NY
November, 2015
"Miniatures have the abiliy to transport the viewer to a place of wonder. They challenge the senses, especially when something is made so beautifully and intricatley that you don't quite know how."
The Journal News
Westchester, NY
September 24, 2015
"Miniatures used to be more about toys," explains Scala. "These days it's more about art. People are seeing them in a way that lets them appreciate the workmanship and quality. Miniatures truly capture the imagination and provide opportunities to dream, discover and explore."
The Cone
August 8, 2015
"In such a short time one man's passion has served as an eye-opener to me and so many others about a unique decorative art form that is often considered a child's plaything or crazy Aunt Sally's dusty obsession. Through recongnition and appreciation fo these intricate, tiny treasures we can study the vast world, rich with large cultures, themes, ideas, in microcosm, through fine minature scale art."
Westchester Home Magazine
Westchester, NY
June, 2015
..."a store brimming with artisan dollhouses and fine-scale collectibles"
Miniature Collector Magazine
June, 2015
"The miniatures community is a buzz about a new brick and mortar store opening..." Owner Darren T. Scala says "I've set out to introduce minatures in a physical environment through face to face social interaction where people can actually see, feel and touch these beautiful objects."
Westchester Family Magazine
Westchester, NY
May, 2015
"Bigger is not always better is proven in this delightful new store featuring artisan dollhouses and fine scale collectibles...."
Dollhouse Miniatures Magazine
May/June 2015
"Dreams do come true....Bigger is not always better is proven in this delightful new store featuring artisan dollhouses and fine scale collectibles...."
The Rivertowns PATCH
April 15, 2015
"Beautiful things come in small packages. And D. Thomas Fine Miniatures proves it! Hastings-on-Hudson has just welcomed a unique new storefront devoted to the fine art of miniatures turning our ideas of what dollhouse furniture is on its head."
The Examiner News
March, 2015
by Pat Casey
"Looking into a miniature recreation of an historical or even modern day room scene is very compelling and pulls the viewer into a perspective that creates a different experience for everyone."
WAG Magazine
November 28, 2014
SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL
by Georgette Gouveia
Photographs by Bob Rozycki
"The cozy shop – all woods and chocolate brown paint – also contains cabinets laden with small treasures – jewelry and other gift items – for those who’d like to dip a teeny-tiny toe into the miniaturist market."
The RIVERTOWNS ENTERPRISE
November 28, 2014
New Shop Showcases Artforms at 1/12th Scale
by Hilari Graff
Photographs by Tim Lamorte
"Size matters to Darren Thomas Scala - and for him, small is spectacular. To raise awareness of miniatures as a decorative and creative expression of art, Scala opened D. Thomas Fine Miniatures last week in the Moviehouse Mews on Warburton Avenue in Hasting."
The RIVERTOWNS DAILY VOICE
December 16, 2014
D. Thomas Fine Miniatures Shop Opens in Hastings
by Jim Barg
Photographs by D. Thomas
"D. Thomas Fine Miniatures, a retail store featuring artisan dollhouses and collectibles, recently opened at 579 Warburton Avenue No 6. The shop is in the Movie House Mews, a converted theater built in 1920 and restored as a commercial space."
Miniature Collector Magazine
November 2014
Featured work in miniature
Guild School Castine, ME
by Ann Day Smith
Photographs by Barbara Davis
