Fine art??? At one of my early train shows, we had a French caterer, besides being arrogant, claimed his culinary creations were fine art, and that my dioramas and custom built rolling stock being offered for sale were toys, and "certainly not fine art ". Not only did I not renew his contract, but I had great pleasure in informing him that my structures at least did not turn into waste in 24 hours ( I’m normally more graphic over these issues…)
After participating for over 50 years in this hobby and seeing many wonderful pikes, I can most assuredly say that model railroading is a fine art…especially since I recently discovered the thread on Nick Muff’s pike. I did more research on Muff and his KCS layout, and discovered and fully believe that had Nick been a painter or sculptor, his work would have been displayed in museums and galleries world-wide. I have seen other great examples in our hobby such as Bob Lawson, George Sellios, John Allen, and more.
The hobby has changed…not for the worse, just a different emphasis leaning greatly towards high tech electronics. In 1962, Had the Railroad Model Craftsman magazine I purchased from the rack in the 7-11 had a cover story about electronics and under the bench activities, I doubt if I ever would have entered the hobby. This issue was about John Allen and his incredible creation…and overnight I was a model railroad wannabe.
Granted…, electronics, computers, and high tech are attracting many younger folks and that is good as whatever it takes to keep our hobby alive is a major plus. But with this new phase…is it steering model railroading away from art? I don’t know as there are several MR’s who besides being excellent modelers are also experts in electronics. For me this is an interesting question as it is the art that is my driving force.
Most if not all of my electronics on my pike are done by friends who possess these skills. Actually I’m not all
I agree that model railroading is fine art. I won’t say I execute it to museum quality, but I enjoy it. What hooked me was a trackplan for the East Broad Top RR in the December 1971 Model Railroader. The artistic painting of the trackplan really captivated me.
What makes this a great hobby is all the different types of parts - artistic, mechanical, electronic, etc.
I agree with you. There is a “lost art” aspect to model railroading that needs to be recaptured. Frank Ellison coined the “art of model railroading” he was an artist not only with model trains but worked in theatre as well.He really understood illusion and proportion. These aspects, when used properly, can do more for layout then worrying over every dimensional precision.
The “lost art” of today is everyone is so caught up with being absolutely precise on their dimensions, that they forgot about illusion, proportion, and forced light and shadow. All art principles. These will do SO much more for achieving a sense of realism then mulling over every rivet.
Indeed, it is a fine art and a whole lot more. Carpentry, construction, electrical, design & planning, painting, photography, history, etc. What other hobby combines as many skills and talents as model railroading?
I view it as a series of acquired skills and honed talents rather than an art. While I think you can be artistic in your modeling endeavors, I wouldn’t call it art.
it’s an art, a miniature nitty, gritty, friendly world. nothing beats looking at an SD40 F7 duo battiling a long train while a pair of gracefully curved E9A’s pass on the other track leading a sleek consist of passenger cars.
One definition I have heard for “Fine Art,” is that it serves no purpose other than to arouse our aesthetic appreciation. By that standard, the caterer was both right and wrong - his stuff looked good (I hope) but its primary purpose was to serve as metabolic fuel. (And don’t forget to flush the ash pit after emptying the under-firebox hopper…)
Some model railroad items are fine art to the beholder (a scratch-built N scale Shay comes to mind) but not to the user (who wants those three disconnect loads out of the woods and into the pond.) This can apply to anything from a Z-scale bobber caboose to an empire the size of a 747 hangar.
On the other hand, some people, for valid reasons of their own, practice the, “Art,” of model railroading at the, “Kid’s crayon drawing on the fridge,” level. This ranges from the train set on the 36 x 45 loop on rolled out grass mat to the innumerable iterations of the Foam Flats and Plywood Pacific. I will readily admit that I am at (or possibly below) that level - but the Empire is a work in (very slow) progress and I am not satisfied with the status quo. I am, however, happy with what I’ve done so far, and look forward to more and better in the future.
Chuck (Not very artistic tin and wrench bender modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
The issue, whether model railroading is an art, pops up every now and then.
I would not want to call model railroading an art, but rather a craft. As in real life, there are craftsmen (artisans) among us, who are more talented than others. Does that make their work into a piece of art?
When does a piece of art is regarded as “art”? I bet there are millions of well-crafted paintings and sculptures in the world, which would not shun a comparison to the Monets, Renoirs, van Goghs and Rodins of this world, but none of them will be considered to be “art”. Why? Because nobody will buy them, unless there is a big name attached to them. They will remain a piece of household decoration at best.
I am prepared to call model railroading an art when someone is buying a layout created by George Sellios and displays it in his living room, just to have a “Sellios”…
There are modelers that sign their work and sell it for hundreds over what they paid for the starting point. I recall a modeler acquiring and displaying the San Juan Central built by Malcom Furlow with a lot of pride. Eric Brooman’s Utah Belt models do pretty well in auction too. [8D]
To say that since there’s a vast scale of abilities that it can’t be considered “art” to me confirms model railroading as an art. No artist is really born into their medium and it takes time to find out what really inspires someone. That may take less time for some and longer for others. The true value is in the beholder regardless of ability. All these mass produced items really don’t have any long term value past our lifetimes, but if touched by a “master”…how many of you would prize a piece of John Allen’s work?
I wouldn’t… I never thought John was a master of anything other then whimsical modeling…There were other modelers of that era was paving the path to todays hobby…
I’ve had the chance to visit 3 layouts and a few train shows. I would say Model Railroading can be a fine art. Some layouts I’ve seen at shows are nice but 2 layouts I’ve visited are in my opinion fine art. Two people helping me with my railway, Gerald and Dave(TA462) have incredibly detailed layouts. The amount of work these two have put into adding such detail like dishes in a kitchen sink just boggles my mind. Every time I visit them I discover something new, lol.
I remember bringing up this topic and WWIII starting.
Being married to an artist does not make me an expert, but I have certainly been exposed to a lot of art.
In it’s crudest form we might say that art is when you create one thing to represent another–certainly model railroading fits that description.
One of the things people are striving for these days in the art community is memorability. That trait makes some layouts stand out and eliminates others.
Some artists look to bring forth emotion. Other’s attempt to depict what they see and allow you to see it as well. Once again, model railroading fits that as well.
But all-in-all we have to look at the attitude of the modeler/artist. Is the modeler looking to get it done with the least amount of work–say the puff-ball trees approach, or is the modeler thinking hard and attempting to portray the “feel” of the area – as in George Selios’s over-use of India ink weathering to increase the feel of poverty, or Malcom Furlow use of whimsy to create an illusion of happy go lucky times.
I think that if a modeler creates a scene that draws you in so that you are looking at the entirety of the scene then at the details then back again like you would a work of art, then it has to be art.