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Think Small: The Tiniest Art in the World
From the astounding to the downright unbelievable, this little volume of mind-blowingly tiny artworks showcases the talents of 24 artists from around the globe. Makers, crafters, art enthusiasts, and fans of tiny works will delight in this homage to all things infinitesimally small. Replete with more than 200 images of miniature masterpieces— including intricately carved pencil leads, fantastical dioramas floating in test tubes, ceramic vases smaller than a sixsided die, crystal cityscape shells designed for hermit crabs, and more— Think Small is sure to make a big impression.
- GenresArtNonfictionArt Design
208 pages, Hardcover
Published April 3, 2018
3 people are currently reading
46 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
June 23, 2018
I am a sucker for SMALL THINGS! Miniatures, dollhouses and dollhouse furniture, the Japanese craze Rement, etc etc. So when I found this book on tiny art, I had to check it out. The "interview" portion repeated in every artist's chapter got to be repetitive, so I skimmed over some of them. But overall, I found the dialogue to be informative and interesting. There are some artists featured who are so worth following up on. Great little book!
January 26, 2021
I'm not sure what it is, but tiny art has always appealed to me. I even enjoy making a miniature painting now and then. So, if you like tiny things and need a reminder of just how wonderfully talented (and dexterous) humans are, give this book a gander.
August 11, 2018
Rarely have I anticipated a book as much as I did for Eva Katz’s Think Small, The Tiniest Art in the World. She collected beautiful examples of intricate art on the smallest scale. Given my eyesight, the quality photography allowed me to appreciate details I could not have seen in a life art show. For me the book is better than a first person experience.
Twenty-three artists are introduced by means of a short interview. Each are asked about their decision to work in small scale, their specific inspirations and work habits. Each is given 3-4 pages to display their work for a total of over 200 items.
Chosen for the cover is an Eiffel Tower carved into a pencil point by Russian artist Salavat Fidai. Almost no other artist’s work would have been as visually arresting. My single favorite artwork was executed by Italian food artist Giulia Bernardelli, in spilled coffee. A camel is silhouetted tracking across a desert. Look close and imagine, or you can miss it.
Other artists work on coins, mint tin lids and threads. All are stunningly detailed. Closing the book is the whimsical work of Hon Trang. While I liked his Leaning Tower of Pizza and his 5 pack of Minions; listing him allows me to quote my favorite text in the book: “He has no formal training in art but uses his mastery of dental tools and techniques to carve crayons”.
Twenty-three artists are introduced by means of a short interview. Each are asked about their decision to work in small scale, their specific inspirations and work habits. Each is given 3-4 pages to display their work for a total of over 200 items.
Chosen for the cover is an Eiffel Tower carved into a pencil point by Russian artist Salavat Fidai. Almost no other artist’s work would have been as visually arresting. My single favorite artwork was executed by Italian food artist Giulia Bernardelli, in spilled coffee. A camel is silhouetted tracking across a desert. Look close and imagine, or you can miss it.
Other artists work on coins, mint tin lids and threads. All are stunningly detailed. Closing the book is the whimsical work of Hon Trang. While I liked his Leaning Tower of Pizza and his 5 pack of Minions; listing him allows me to quote my favorite text in the book: “He has no formal training in art but uses his mastery of dental tools and techniques to carve crayons”.
February 26, 2023
Loved this! I only wish there had been more: more pictures/different works per artist, maybe even more artists featured. Imagine this book, but brick-sized and full of detailed photographs of all these tiny artworks. It would be perfect!
It took me a while to finish this because every time an artist mentioned another one of their pieces that isn’t shown in the book, of course I had to go look it up. I also looked up the portfolios of some artists that particularly intrigued me.
Sometimes it bothered me that there was barely any information on the particular artworks shown, beside the interview — but that’s more about the artist in general. Luckily some artists have information on their website about materials used and answered my questions that way.
As lovely as it was to read this book, it would’ve been so much cooler if we could admire these pieces in a museum as well. Is there a tiny art museum yet? If not, there should be.
It took me a while to finish this because every time an artist mentioned another one of their pieces that isn’t shown in the book, of course I had to go look it up. I also looked up the portfolios of some artists that particularly intrigued me.
Sometimes it bothered me that there was barely any information on the particular artworks shown, beside the interview — but that’s more about the artist in general. Luckily some artists have information on their website about materials used and answered my questions that way.
As lovely as it was to read this book, it would’ve been so much cooler if we could admire these pieces in a museum as well. Is there a tiny art museum yet? If not, there should be.
June 11, 2018
Really cute book with some amazing art! It is amazing how much detail can go into a tiny scale!
September 18, 2021
4.5
A really fun high-quality-paged art book with everything made in miniature. Carved tops of pencils and another with crayons, tiny-sized food made out of Fimo, a woman who makes 'crystal houses' that "collaborate" with Hermit Crabs, impermanent pieces from nature, paintings inside bottle caps and on almonds, nature scenes in mint tins, fantasy dwellings floating in test tubes... A fascinating look at tiny worlds.
The questions asked of the artists were a little redundant but since some people are formally trained artists and others are not (each equally as good as the other) it was probably necessary to form a cohesive understanding. I enjoyed hearing about what kind of tools and materials were used to create.
A good quality sampling of what the artists produced was exhibited, though I would have enjoyed a few more pages of each. I'm sure that would have jacked up the price of the book. My book's cover is simply all white with petite blue lettering carrying the title, THINK SMALL; this added to my enjoyment.
The one small complaint I have (pun intended) was the scale of the pieces were not always apparent--some showed paintbrushes, pens, a coin, etc. adjacent--but I think given the nature of the work, every photo should have had something to indicate size.
A fresh book published in 2018 that's very enjoyable and even astounding.
A really fun high-quality-paged art book with everything made in miniature. Carved tops of pencils and another with crayons, tiny-sized food made out of Fimo, a woman who makes 'crystal houses' that "collaborate" with Hermit Crabs, impermanent pieces from nature, paintings inside bottle caps and on almonds, nature scenes in mint tins, fantasy dwellings floating in test tubes... A fascinating look at tiny worlds.
The questions asked of the artists were a little redundant but since some people are formally trained artists and others are not (each equally as good as the other) it was probably necessary to form a cohesive understanding. I enjoyed hearing about what kind of tools and materials were used to create.
A good quality sampling of what the artists produced was exhibited, though I would have enjoyed a few more pages of each. I'm sure that would have jacked up the price of the book. My book's cover is simply all white with petite blue lettering carrying the title, THINK SMALL; this added to my enjoyment.
The one small complaint I have (pun intended) was the scale of the pieces were not always apparent--some showed paintbrushes, pens, a coin, etc. adjacent--but I think given the nature of the work, every photo should have had something to indicate size.
A fresh book published in 2018 that's very enjoyable and even astounding.
January 5, 2019
There’s nothing here. Story after story of people who didn’t or couldn’t make it at a career so they started making little things as a hobby. Not a lot of evidence that many of them have gone beyond a hobby. Many seem to work in a small size because they don’t have the patience to work on something that would require an investment of time or focus.
It could’ve been an interesting book if they had talk to people who had actually purchased these works of “art” And figured out why they buy them, why they collect them etc .. or perhaps interviewed people at a show that included some of their art. I don’t know, some thing.
It could’ve been an interesting book if they had talk to people who had actually purchased these works of “art” And figured out why they buy them, why they collect them etc .. or perhaps interviewed people at a show that included some of their art. I don’t know, some thing.
February 8, 2019
I loved the questions the artists were asked. Although many of the artists began working small because of space or time constraints, some of their reasoning was very heartfelt. My favorite answer was from Shinji Nakaba, an artist who does carvings on pearls. He said he likes doing miniatures because it makes him feel godlike.
Another thing I liked about this book was the range of materials. There lots of minature paintings, but there was also embroidery, pencil graphite carving, and polymer clay.
Another thing I liked about this book was the range of materials. There lots of minature paintings, but there was also embroidery, pencil graphite carving, and polymer clay.
October 20, 2019
There is a lot that I appreciate about this book. First of all the art is really cool (how do they work so tiny?!) and there are plenty of photos to look at, they include 3D as well as 2D art, and unlike some other reviewers I actually enjoyed the artist interviews. It's so inspiring!
Something that's missing though, that I felt was really important for a book about tiny things--- was the scale. Some photos included pencils and coins for size reference but it seems like a huge oversight to not systematically include the dimensions of each piece so we know how tiny they actually are.
Something that's missing though, that I felt was really important for a book about tiny things--- was the scale. Some photos included pencils and coins for size reference but it seems like a huge oversight to not systematically include the dimensions of each piece so we know how tiny they actually are.
December 30, 2019
This was a really accessible art book. I liked how each artist was introduced, then interviewed and then a selection of their artwork shown.
I also liked that the book was really small to go with the small artwork.
Well organized. I would definitely recommend this because some of the pieces in here are really cool.
I also liked that the book was really small to go with the small artwork.
Well organized. I would definitely recommend this because some of the pieces in here are really cool.
June 18, 2018
I wish there were more pictures of the art and a bit less of the repetitive questionnaire the editor used on the artists. Some aspects were interesting but some were tedious. The art however was awesome.
April 3, 2018
Review by Matt Hinrichs at Medium.com/@becomingrewired - https://medium.com/@becomingrewired/b...
June 23, 2019
Would have enjoyed more art and less artist bio.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews