Adventures in Scale

Architectural model making is a field of ceaseless enquiries. While the scale model is designed to be apprehended in the round, its materiality has been radically altered in the age of mechanical reproducibility. Over the 20th century, new visualisation techniques and practices fuelled a relentless quest for realism, as the perception of miniature was reconfigured through the camera lens. Further experiments with model-video simulation addressed the discrepancy between human and model scales that is known as Gulliver Gap. The recurring references to Jonathan Swift’s novel in the discourse on model making attest to the allure of scale narratives within architectural culture. This is corroborated by the work of contemporary photographers, such as Naoya Hatakeyama, who have explored the uncanny space we imaginatively inhabit when moving between scales. Weaving together theories, experiments, and narratives, the essay traces how adventures in scale are embedded in the architectural imagination