Small
Recent trends in contemporary art have meant that we've grown accustomed to large scale pieces, be that huge canvases, enormous sculptures, or giant installations.
However, the miniature has always been an important part of contemporary art. Be it paintings, sculpture, or photography as well as small format drawings, the reduced dimensions of the artwork puts new constraints on the artist, forcing them to develop their techniques and artistic finesse.
Jeff Wall, an American photographer known for his large scale photographic prints on huge illuminated boxes, has said that “the scale of a piece is not about the dimensions of it, but about the internal tensions within the composition".
Believe it or not, miniature pieces have many advantages. Smaller formats allow the artists to show off a different range of talents and techniques, and sometimes even create the impression of a much higher quality piece – such as engravings or prints. Creating a miniature is a sure sign of precision and skill.
They are also more practical to exhibit than the enormous artworks: we've all got a little space on a shelf ready to welcome a miniature sculpture, photo or drawing.
Another very practical aspect of miniatures is the myriad possibilities for display: you could put together a full shelf of statuettes, or even a dedicated framing wall – which is an increasingly popular method for display, and makes for the perfect decorative addition to a living room or bedroom. It's a mixed composition made up of an array of pieces – you guessed it – all on the same wall. The diminutive size of the miniatures also makes it easier to make sure your favourite pieces are displayed in pride of place.
Even artists who are known for their monumental works are slowly getting into miniatures, like Jeff Wall in his exhibition at the Cartier Foundation.
The miniature is making a big name for itself as a growing trend across the contemporary art world; from Gaspard Mitz, who creates tiny versions of the interiors of famous art galleries in his 'Box Stories', to the photography of Samsofy, who recreates scenes from daily life with miniscule Lego 'actors'.
Last but not least, the small scale of the pieces means that even big names come with small price tags, meaning that miniatures make excellent presents. So, go on, what are you waiting for? Browse our selection of miniature works now…
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Aquarelles graphiques 3
Agathe Wagner
Fine Art Drawings - 36 x 46 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 14.2 x 18.1 x 0.4 inch
$925
Ours marchant
Marie-Josèphe Stenne
Sculpture - 18 x 37.5 x 12.5 cm Sculpture - 7.1 x 14.8 x 4.9 inch
$786 $629
Still Life With Bottles
André Dunoyer de Segonzac
Print - 32.5 x 23 x 0.1 cm Print - 12.8 x 9.1 x 0 inch
$624
Portrait of Benito Mussolini
Alberto Manetti
Fine Art Drawings - 30.7 x 22 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 12.1 x 8.7 x 0.1 inch
$694
Absorbing reading
Pablo Echaurren
Fine Art Drawings - 38 x 28 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15 x 11 x 0.1 inch
$1,387
Intimate Talk
Luigi Bompard
Fine Art Drawings - 27 x 22 x 0.3 cm Fine Art Drawings - 10.6 x 8.7 x 0.1 inch
$670
A Rainy Day in Yerevan
Aram Movsisyan
Painting - 40 x 30 x 2 cm Painting - 15.7 x 11.8 x 0.8 inch
$280 $224
To meet the nightflower
Hans Innemée
Painting - 35 x 30 x 2 cm Painting - 13.8 x 11.8 x 0.8 inch
$3,005 $1,503
Satyr Sculpture
Aurelio Mistruzzi
Sculpture - 31 x 12 x 10 cm Sculpture - 12.2 x 4.7 x 3.9 inch
$6,249
Manufactura 3
Oriol Texidor
Photography - 40 x 50 x 7 cm Photography - 15.7 x 19.7 x 2.8 inch
$1,456
Luke McAlister
Clément Poitrenaud
Photography - 30 x 30 x 0.1 cm Photography - 11.8 x 11.8 x 0 inch
$1,271
Secret Invasion
Lenil Yu
Fine Art Drawings - 44 x 28 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 17.3 x 11 x 0.4 inch
$3,005
Twickenham Streaker
Ian Bradshaw
Photography - 30 x 42.5 x 0.1 cm Photography - 11.8 x 16.7 x 0 inch
$2,254
Amazing Spiderman
Mike McKone
Fine Art Drawings - 44 x 28 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 17.3 x 11 x 0.4 inch
$2,543
Dark Viscid (Buio Viscido)
Ennio Pouchard
Print - 48.7 x 32.8 x 0.2 cm Print - 19.2 x 12.9 x 0.1 inch
$393
The Cash Machine
Otto Schade
Fine Art Drawings - 30 x 21 x 0.01 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11.8 x 8.3 x 0 inch
$1,040
Roitelet couronné
Jean-Pierre Ceytaire
Painting - 33 x 46 x 2 cm Painting - 13 x 18.1 x 0.8 inch
$3,005 $2,254
Chartres dans les colzas
Michel Maly
Painting - 27 x 41 x 2 cm Painting - 10.6 x 16.1 x 0.8 inch
$4,118
Abstract Composition in red
Emile Marze
Fine Art Drawings - 32 x 50 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 12.6 x 19.7 x 0 inch
$462
Portrait of man
Pierre Emile Lelong
Painting - 29 x 27 x 0.1 cm Painting - 11.4 x 10.6 x 0 inch
$555
Strip Nature
Contempologyc E.M.
Fine Art Drawings - 29.7 x 21 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11.7 x 8.3 x 0 inch
$532
Abstract Composition
Stefano Alberici
Fine Art Drawings - 32 x 40 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 12.6 x 15.7 x 0 inch
$555
Garden of Love
Tamara Bakhshinyan
Sculpture - 37 x 45 x 2 cm Sculpture - 14.6 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch
$566
Vintage "Otero" Table Lamp Model 2748
Rodolfo Dordoni
Design - 47 x 40 x 40 cm Design - 18.5 x 15.7 x 15.7 inch
$3,468
Love is (not) a fight
Bob Tonic
Sculpture - 30 x 20 x 15 cm Sculpture - 11.8 x 7.9 x 5.9 inch
$3,005 $2,524
Uncanny X-Force
Mark Brooks
Fine Art Drawings - 43 x 28 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 16.9 x 11 x 0.4 inch
$2,081
L'Abeille - The Bee
Alex Konahin
Fine Art Drawings - 33 x 46 x 1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 13 x 18.1 x 0.4 inch
$2,312
Bucolic Scene
Oskar Kokoschka
Fine Art Drawings - 31 x 22.5 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 12.2 x 8.9 x 0.1 inch
$15,026
Composition I
Aaron Labin (Grigoryan)
Fine Art Drawings - 42 x 35 cm Fine Art Drawings - 16.5 x 13.8 inch
$405
Artemis - Glazed Majolica Statute
Carlo Lorenzetti
Sculpture - 48.5 x 30 x 23 cm Sculpture - 19.1 x 11.8 x 9.1 inch
$9,247
Desperate
Lucien Coutaud
Fine Art Drawings - 26 x 21 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 10.2 x 8.3 x 0 inch
$416
Seated Woman
Suzie Bernardeau
Fine Art Drawings - 32 x 31.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 12.6 x 12.4 x 0 inch
$324
Vintage Murano Glass Vase Model 5357
Aureliano Toso
Design - 39 x 14 x 14 cm Design - 15.4 x 5.5 x 5.5 inch
$3,930
Eléphantasme organique
Anis Dargaa
Sculpture - 36 x 29 x 12 cm Sculpture - 14.2 x 11.4 x 4.7 inch
$20,806
Landscape
Armin Guther
Fine Art Drawings - 24 x 32 x 0.3 cm Fine Art Drawings - 9.4 x 12.6 x 0.1 inch
$347
Mini Chorus 1
Geoff Catlow
Fine Art Drawings - 33 x 33 x 4 cm Fine Art Drawings - 13 x 13 x 1.6 inch
$686
The Wash House
Pierre Dubois
Fine Art Drawings - 48 x 38 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 18.9 x 15 x 0 inch
$485
Man machine
Louis Durand
Fine Art Drawings - 35 x 26 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 13.8 x 10.2 x 0 inch
$439
Sleeping Cat
Giselle Halff
Fine Art Drawings - 24.5 x 31 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 9.6 x 12.2 x 0.1 inch
$289
Roi soleil
Yuri Romagnoli (Hopnn)
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 30 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 11.8 inch
$462
Gallinacean III
Brigitte Chombart de Lauwe
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 50 x 2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch
$786
Andy Warhol and the Velvet Underground, NY 1966 (With John Cale, Gérard Malanga, Nico)
Hervé Gloaguen
Photography - 40 x 50 cm Photography - 15.7 x 19.7 inch
$2,601
Variation #11 (série méditation)
José Luis Lopez Lara
Painting - 25.7 x 37.7 cm Painting - 10.1 x 14.8 inch
$520 $468
Sourire au clair d'un sourire
La Fabrique du Sourire
Print - 30 x 30 cm Print - 11.8 x 11.8 inch
$144
The Dancer
Maurice Van Moppes
Fine Art Drawings - 26.5 x 18.5 x 0.5 cm Fine Art Drawings - 10.4 x 7.3 x 0.2 inch
$347
Internal Nude
Tibor Gertler
Fine Art Drawings - 48 x 31 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 18.9 x 12.2 x 0 inch
$347
Nude of Woman
Gaspard Maillol
Fine Art Drawings - 27.5 x 24.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 10.8 x 9.6 x 0 inch
$462
Masque Cubiste Grand
Miguel Guía
Sculpture - 34 x 9.5 x 17 cm Sculpture - 13.4 x 3.7 x 6.7 inch
$1,318