TheRailwire
General Discussion => N and Z Scales => Topic started by: Noah Lane on December 11, 2014, 09:40:55 PM
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I just randomly came across this guy on Instagram. He appears to be more of an artist-modeler than a model railroader, but his urban dioramas are incredible!
http://www.hoodtimesproject.com/#!gallery/cobg
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Pretty great. I recognize some of the kits.
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Those hipsters seem to be enjoying some nice modeling. Ironically. :D
It is good looking stuff. I wonder if we could talk him into some tracks on those modules? They look almost T-Track size. I have some of those buildings, mine are pretty crude compared to those.
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N or HO? Looks kinda in between to me.
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His "About" page says he works to 1/150 scale. I spotted a length of N-scale Gold Medal Models chain link fencing with barbed wire in the foreground of one of his photos. Great work and convincing atmosphere.
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Terrific stuff. The clutter and junk of our day to day is usually lacking on our models; this guy nailed it.
Mark in Oregon
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George Sellios of modern times?
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That's all N. I was able to spot DPM, Life-Like, Kato and To mix buildings. Vehicles were Bachmann, Tomytec and CMW. The donut store, hotel and several others were pretty much stock with some additional painting.
The guy has an interesting eye for things, but nothing I would put in a gallery.
Also, upperclass blonds thinking they are worldly by shooting urban decay models with iPhones while munching on MM cookies kind of ruined the atmosphere for me. Sort of reminds me of a story I heard long ago about the old Packard plant in Detroit. Waves of hipsters enter the property to shoot urban decay with their Lomo and call it an art project. Anyway, many would encounter strange noises, think someone else was there and call 911. This if course put a lot of stress in the Detroit PD, and they would have to break off legitimate calls to respond to these spooked suburban gawkers.
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Pretty cool idea, modeling as art. Probably had to happen as artists are always seeking new mediums to be different. Maybe the best N Trak clubs ought to set up in an underused art gallery for more exposure. Granted, more people go to the shopping malls these days. Or maybe those of us who host open houses ought to add wine and cheese to improve the atmosphere......
Although, I do have to say, in this case, the details would probably have shown been better in HO. Interesting choice of scale.
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Even though this is very good modeling and I give the guy credit, this is also very sad. What were once busting cities and towns are now crumbling buildings and overgrown empty lots. I see this sort of stuff on a daily bases. It's was depressing enough to live through it, I have no desire to model the decline of America. Just my two cents and your mileage may vary ;)
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Pretty cool stuff - definitely an eye for it.
I don't understand the hostility toward it here, though.
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No anger for the artist, just the gallery setting. Tom, Bryan and others here do it better. F***ing hipsters man.
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No anger for the artist, just the gallery setting. Tom, Bryan and others here do it better. F***ing hipsters man.
Please, tell us how you really feel...:)
Mark in Oregon
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k.... not going to let it go.
it is 'Art' because it was created to be 'Art'
If the things sell as miniature sculpture, we all gain.
more respect for our abilities.
On a personal outlook of the subject
I don't like the weathering and graffiti appearing on
recent models. I prefer the shiney new look.
so the scenes represented are not my taste.
I draws 'em as I sees 'em.
I gotta wonder that van gogh saw...
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There's another guy who does this in HO http://www.peterfeigenbaum.com/gallery/index.php?album=model-rr exactly the same deal, model railroad kits weathered with graffiti and put on exhibit in a gallery for the white wine and brie crowd. Peter Feigenbaum, the HO guy, may well have given the N guy the idea!
What's a little sad is that the guy built an interesting model railroad while he was in high school, but then he went to Yale, where he apparently found that model railroaders were too dorky for words, and applied his talents to the art gallery routine. In some ways a loss for the hobby -- I e-mailed him, and he pretty much confirmed he's left the hobby.
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Most of the single guys would give a left nut to get some hot blondes to come to their open house layout. IF calling it trendy art and serving wine and cheese is what it takes, I sense a trend......Hey, I bet Fonzie would give it a try! Cooooool......
No, seriously, anything that makes old fashion scale modeling an art, that glorifies it in most anyway is probably a good thing. I would almost sense and MR article on it, slightly OT, unless they contact those guys and find that Art Curren was their guru. And, a possible new growth market for the Kalmbach Dept or recycled articles and books.
Thinking about it, maybe MR needs a boost in circulation anyway (checked the Jan issue, and circulation dipped another 10K this year to 89+K, following a decade of 10K annual drops from 220K
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I have to say I got a kick out of the wineglass-girl photo... maybe she would be as interested in the same display at a train show?? :trollface:
The other, more positive part of me says here's a group of people really captivated by some great modelling, and this shows that (modelling) it isn't really "too dorky for words" :D
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No. Just no. The only reason she is there is to prove her status by going to an art show. She would have the same appreciation fir these models as she would have for a performance artist eating dirty cat liter.
Its a scene because you are seen, not fir the artists.
I have run into this sort of crowd before and they "annoy" me.
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At the very least, your layout back story would have to be a bit hipper than "I model the Monon from 1954 to...." Would have to start out "It was a gritty time to be an American......" or some such. Anything other than a "dark and stormy night" (unless, of course, you have appropriate animation) :facepalm:
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I will say that Feigenbaum's ideas inspired me in parts of my layout. One idea he had was to take cheapo Bachmann autos and chop them up into burned-out cars:
[attachimg=1]
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as I sat on an noon so pretty
there came a posting, a posting on my lap top screen.
it said, art no more.
the hot chica is there for status one supposes.
and from all I can tell about hot chica...
what her girlz say is far more important to her
than the guys (dorky of what ever isn't dorky)
after you get past that point in your thinking,
women are easy to lure... shiny baubles are very effective.
just keep in mind what her friends think is more important
than what you think.
back to the art?
if it sells, then the artis can use the money to make more
or to buy baubles.
as long as it sells....
once it sells we all gain in status.
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Or maybe those of us who host open houses ought to add wine and cheese to improve the atmosphere......
This would probably be much more popular than the pretzels and ice tea I usually offer when I host open houses. And since I model the Bath and Hammondsport ("The Champagne Trail") I suppose I have a good excuse... :D
Ron
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I have run into this sort of crowd before and they "annoy" me.
Clearly.
I don't particularly care why people are looking at models. If it's for the modelling or for the art, does it really matter? If someone takes enjoyment, in any form, from your work isn't that a good thing?
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I don't know how I feel about the whole gallery display thing. On one hand, it seems a bit silly. But I've also seen far less interesting "art" being displayed at galleries. I think anyone would find these dioramas at least moderately interesting. Especially when free booze is involved.
I originally posted this simply because they were interesting little dioramas. And something a bit out of the norm.
One major difference between what this guy does, and "advanced" model railroading, is that model railroading involves soo much more: track laying, electrical work, prototype knowledge, computer/programming knowledge, carpentry/benchwork, etc. And the intensity levels in each of these categories can vary greatly. But can you imagine how much better your structures/street-scapes would be if you didn't have to spend time fussing with all of those other things?
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Great modeling is great modeling. As for the ideological bourgeoisie vs proletariat N Scale Model Railroad purity test. From one photo you can tell someone situation, motivation and class. Well done Railwire Politruk. Due to your vigilance and ideological purity, you have extinguished the bonfires of the ground foam and ready to run bourgeoisie. Long live the modellers paradise, The Railwire Revolution.
Not fit to be a Comrade a$$hat
G
Just my lame a$$ humor
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I guess I remember spin art, performance art (yoko ono sitting in a bag) and all sorts of other modern art that most folks trashed as "not art." Like I say (and sure no art expert) but modern artists are always looking at something new. Maybe using scale modeling just had to happen, in the quest for pop art to find something new. It does feel like the guy "feels it", is modeling something he knows, and does a 9-10 level job of it.
Anything that makes old school modeling can't hurt us in N scale, esp. since he chose N. Feature him in a magazine. MR or NSR could sponsor an urban modeling prize (and later, with new BLMA cornstalks) a rural modeling prize. In reality, they could do a better job of varying their project layouts by region, scenery type, etc. rather than just another railroad with generic scenery (more or less)
For all those reasons, all is good. Introduce him to Rod Stewart.
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Pretty cool stuff - definitely an eye for it.
I don't understand the hostility toward it here, though.
Not sure if your post was in response to my post, but I'll explain my answer. I'm personally not hostile against the modeling, I think the person did a great job. As for the people viewing it, well that is just as much a part of life as the Urban Decay being modeled. My point stems from actually living through the decline of the Steel industry here in the rust belt. Currently I live across the river from an empty lot that use to be Jones and Laughlin Steel, a completely integrated mill that was approx. 7 miles in length and half a mile in width. A integrated mill had the ability to produce steel from raw products. At peak employment, there were slightly over 15,000 people that worked in that mill. Before the mills closure, employment was approx. 10,000 people. When the mill went down, the town and two railroads followed. Now instead of a bustling town, there are empty lots and boarded up buildings. While the modeling is quite good, it reminds me of a painful era in the recent past. Just my 2 cents and your mileage may vary ;)
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looks like a page out of north philly
Germantown and Broad or Frankford
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Not sure if your post was in response to my post, but I'll explain my answer. I'm personally not hostile against the modeling, I think the person did a great job.
Seems to me that the multiple hostile posts were from Daniel. Seemed pretty clear to me.
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Seems to me that the multiple hostile posts were from Daniel. Seemed pretty clear to me.
Hi Peteski, Since the post appeared after my post and I didn't want to assume, I decided I'd explain a little further. :D
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Architects can and do the same thing, only without graffiti, and with their own scratch-built designs. Probably get paid a lot more. They just lack hot chicks, cookies and wine. Usually neither one includes tracks of any scale. I would guess the lesson here (if there is one) would be if you want chicks, cookies, and wine- do some urban decay modeling.
I seem to recall that Rod Stewart's layout had a fair amount of urban detail. He probably has all the chicks, cookies and wine he wants, but it's not because of his modeling.
Bruce
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Pretty remarkable modelling to my eye. He is trying to make a statement that is more than the literal appearance of the models, clearly.
No small irony to have push back on the art aspect amongst this crowd. Lots of artistry posted in on this forum, no one would dare call it out in a similar way.
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I was a member of the Belmont Shore Lines N-scale club in San Pedro, CA back in the 1990's and at the time, we had a nicely diversified membership including Anglos, blacks, Latinos, Asians, and who knows what else. All of us were active modelers and we all had a great time together. When I built my first N-scale diorama of Skid Row (covered in an early issue of N-Scale magazine and eventually built into the club layout), a couple of young black club members were praising me for the detail and grittiness of the scene, but then quietly told me that at the same time it was depressing to look at. It reminded them of how they grew up. So I can understand the mixed feelings that result from this type of modeling.
Carrying the topic further, another club member told me of a layout visit he participated in during an NMRA convention back east where the layout's builder had chosen World War Two Germany as his railroad's locale and era. He modeled in HO scale and used Fleischmann, Roco, and other European models of German steam locos and cars. But he also reproduced urban scenes of Nazi Germany to the most infinite level of detailing and for that reason, our club member left with a very uneasy feeling. He said the quality of modeling was first rate everywhere he looked, but the subject matter completely negated that.
And around that same time, I received in the mail, for reasons unexplained, a copy of a Chinese modelmaking magazine published in English from someone I never heard of before or since. In that issue was a brilliantly executed 1/35 scale diorama of a city street scene in Nanking during the Japanese invasion in December 1937 - January 1938. We've probably all heard about the vicious atrocities committed against the Chinese populace by the Imperial Japanese Army but this particular modeler wanted to make sure his audience understood every last gruesome thing about it. He went into painstaking detail depicting the violence by fashioning beautifully proportioned and painted figures of civilian women, infants, and so on and then did the same with the invading troops including bayonets, rifles, and more. I considered the quality of modeling to be equal to best I have ever seen. The article that accompanied the photos was about 60% on modeling techniques and 40% emotional ruminations on the evil nature of the invaders and how their homeland was never properly held to account for that incident.
And then there was my visit to the Carol and Barry Kaye Museum of Miniatures on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles that I visited in the mid 1990's (it's now closed.) This amazingly upscale display of the finest in scale modeling included a collection of some very interesting dioramas by a talented black lady who used her skills to show what was INSIDE those "urban decay" scenes. She created typical everyday venues such as tenement living rooms, AME church meetings on Sunday, and even a fully equipped replica of the O. J. Simpson courtroom trial complete with furniture, television cameras, and every major character in accurate clothing and styles. She went so far as to reproduce the collection of hourglasses hidden behind Judge Ito's desk!
The Urban Decay modeling we're seeing on display here is another way a gifted craftsman can use a hobby or art form to share his or her feelings about life in general. We all seem to build models of what we know or what we grew up with. I think we as model railroaders can learn a lot of great scale modeling tricks from these fascinating people.
Not sure if your post was in response to my post, but I'll explain my answer. I'm personally not hostile against the modeling, I think the person did a great job. As for the people viewing it, well that is just as much a part of life as the Urban Decay being modeled. My point stems from actually living through the decline of the Steel industry here in the rust belt. Currently I live across the river from an empty lot that use to be Jones and Laughlin Steel, a completely integrated mill that was approx. 7 miles in length and half a mile in width. A integrated mill had the ability to produce steel from raw products. At peak employment, there were slightly over 15,000 people that worked in that mill. Before the mills closure, employment was approx. 10,000 people. When the mill went down, the town and two railroads followed. Now instead of a bustling town, there are empty lots and boarded up buildings. While the modeling is quite good, it reminds me of a painful era in the recent past. Just my 2 cents and your mileage may vary ;)
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Agree with previous commenters that that is some very excellent modelling. For those who feel our hobby doesn't get enough respect, this is actual tangible proof that it can be considered art.
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I'm reminded a bit of Laurie Nix's post-apocalyptic dioramas (https://www.google.ca/search?q=laurie+nix&hl=en&biw=1277&bih=683&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=QQuMVMHAHtjioAS4yYHYDA&ved=0CDEQsAQ#imgdii=_).
Interesting post Loren.
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[extreme_drift]
Straying even further afield I am reminded of our former neighbor in Maryland, Clarke Bedford, a self-proclaimed faux-artist who made pieces that combined considerable craftsmanship, knowledge of art history, and more than a touch of whimsy. Little gems such as these:
(http://clarkebedford.com/cms/files/2013/3600/9612/websculp4.jpg)(http://clarkebedford.com/cms/files/6813/3281/4248/sculp.jpg)(http://clarkebedford.com/cms/files/1513/3600/9618/websculp7.jpg)
He's best known for his awesome collection of art cars (http://clarkebedford.com/cms/index.php/art-cars/#!prettyPhoto) and helmets (http://clarkebedford.com/cms/index.php/helmets/) which can often be seen in and around DC:
(http://richardmorrisauthor.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/clarke-bedford-w-art-car-front.jpg)
and his booklet about William Tecumseh Sherman (played by himself) living out the post-war years in the suburbs:
(http://clarkebedford.com/cms/files/cache/8579930327f54b4f5daf8522a4fcd8de.jpg)
:D [/extreme_drift]
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Man Loren, that is a cornucopia of scenes I would never touch. I always thought modeling war scenes is a bit in poor taste. It just seems to either belittle the tragedy or try to evoke emotion that the model itself should produce, not the subject matter.
I can totally understand why people would model it... interesting times. But personally, I choose to avoid war, poverty and social injustice. My layout will reflect the best of humanity.
Oh... something just occurred to me. Many modelers choose to model the 50's and 60's but I have not yet seen any scenes of civil rights protests. I wonder why that is.
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In the early years of forums, I recall someone showing (it may have been for sale) someone with an N scale model of the Auschwitz concentration camp entry, which most agreed was poor taste or inappropriate. I am sure the artists would beg to differ, if the intent is to show a slice of life, no matter how unpleasant. It is what it is and their right to do it, even if it makes me feel queasy. Perhaps that is the point of art, at least some art.
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As long as we're mentioning art, context and audience are both important. A detailed, well-executed model of Auschwitz would be perfectly appropriate, say, in the Holocaust Museum and wouldn't make anyone uncomfortable except in its intended message of saying something about the Holocaust. The same might apply to a well-done model of a bombed-out German city in a historical museum. Neither outside of those contexts would be in good taste, and a sensible editor wouldn't put them in MR -- why borrow trouble?
Some folks here don't feel completely comfortable with artsy-craftsy fashionable people sipping wine around urban graffiti cityscapes where they'd never think of walking down the street. I think there might be a context there, too. Good modeling is good modeling, but that doesn't cancel out problems with context or audience. I agree the models are good, but in the context of radical chic, not necessarily in the best context.
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"Context" is an excellent point, although I find no issue with the expression of truthful grittiness in art salon settings. Good art is simply pleasurable to experience, great art makes you think and elicits emotion. The deep-urban scenes are most certainly in the latter category. 3D representational art is actually a very rare medium in traditional art. However, we call it "modeling".
This recalls a recent trip where we browsed a gallery exhibiting an artist with beautiful technique and balance, great use of color and really appealing form... except the depictions were very dark... dying and death, or otherwise very Goth in tone. We couldn't get past the subject. We tried hard to find something we could hang on the wall or in the studio, and just couldn't. As in the context discussion, this was also taking the "thinking and emotion" thing to the limits.
FWIW, my professional artist spouse was and is one of those attractive gallery patrons being castigated here. But maybe she redeems herself because she doesn't sip wine, and always passes the M&M cookies my way.
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And just for the record....
Some of our best friends are "artists"....and we ( my wife and I) like both wine and M&M cookies...:)
Mark in Oregon
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FWIW, my professional artist spouse was and is one of those attractive gallery patrons being castigated here. But maybe she redeems herself because she doesn't sip wine, and always passes the M&M cookies my way.
WHOA! So it IS possible for dorky model rails to get hot chicks! Maybe guys should post pix here of their wives instead of their layouts (snark).
Seriously, the detail that brings out the most realism in the models are the trashed and littered roofs. Not many of us depict model roofs, especially old ones, that accumulated decades of dirt, dead animals, trash, rotted newspapers and all the other stuff that collects there.
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That's all N. I was able to spot DPM, Life-Like, Kato and To mix buildings. Vehicles were Bachmann, Tomytec and CMW. The donut store, hotel and several others were pretty much stock with some additional painting.
The donut store is an HO scene, those police cars are a dead giveaway. Nobody has Crown Vics in N-scale except Willmodels and they are solid resin.
Some of the vehicles were Wiking.
The overall effect (at a distance) is pretty good, but up close I think the weathering and decay is a little heavy-handed, typical of a lot of modelers that attempt this effect. But then we get back into the "exaggerated for clarity" discussion...
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The overall effect (at a distance) is pretty good, but up close I think the weathering and decay is a little heavy-handed, typical of a lot of modelers that attempt this effect. But then we get back into the "exaggerated for clarity" discussion...
Jimmo,
Not true. There are several place in DC no more then ten minutes drive from me that would match his work exactly. His would even be a tad cleaner in a couple of cases.
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Jimmo,
Not true. There are several place in DC no more then ten minutes drive from me that would match his work exactly. His would even be a tad cleaner in a couple of cases.
Phillip, I suppose if I stated it as a fact that this level of urban decay was non-existent (thus unrealistic) then one could say "not true." It was only my opinion concerning the model work.
I've seen plenty of urban decay in my 60+ years of existence and modeling 1/160 ever since it's introduction. If you are convinced that it looks real then (in your eyes) it's a great model. I'm not as easily convinced.
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Wow, if the point of good art is to get people talking and thinking, this is excellent work.
Personally, I think it's great and rather groundbreaking, at least in N. And anybody that can get an art gallery exhibit doing it, well, more power to them. I'm at least mildly jealous. 3D scale modeling is a media that hardly ever gets done except in museums. For all we say about modeling instead of 'pour it out of the box', this should be the last place to ever trash it.
Within the social commentary is also a rather wicked sense of humor. The 'zoo' billboard features a snarling raccoon, possibly rabid. "Dollar Store" is "dolla Sto ", in some neighborhoods, letter-dropped just like it sounds. "Bed Bugs & Beyond" used furniture? That's a gem. We may all be taking him more seriously than you think and the joke is on us. He's got a full profile on that page, and I think he's done well as an artist by any measure.
I'm trying to model Flagstaff, AZ in the 70's. During that period, Santa Fe Ave. was a borderline tacky mix of 3rd class retail, bars, and old tourist hotels, all left bypassed off of Rt. 66 when I-40 was built. While no where near the situation he models, it's not squeaky-clean either. The Commercial Hotel burned with a fire of suspicious origin. Today, Joes Place (bar) is now a souvenir shop, the "Hong Kong Café" is now "Karma", Club 66 is a crystal shop, just the entire area reeks of college and upscale, and the mild Rt 66 tackiness is completely gone. The Hotel Monte Vista now has a ghost cult following and is a "must see". They've even planted TREES along the sidewalk. Capturing that now-lost feel in a model is a challenge. It's not bad, but you'd definitely think twice about going down there at midnight on a Saturday in 1972. Anybody that can capture that 'feel' on a model gets my admiration, I'm still rather struggling.
The Pithole, PA museum has a wonderful N diorama of the entire town in the 1860's, and it's every bit the sorry, muddy, treeless, paintless, and hell-bent-for-fortune boomtown mess that the historic photos show - no "Little House on the Prairie". I always admired that one.
I sent the link to one of my friends and he responded "rather accurate, take the Paoli local out of Philadelphia".
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:D Much like (as the kids say). :lol: This thread is a gem.
Great modeling is great modeling. As for the ideological bourgeoisie vs proletariat N Scale Model Railroad purity test. From one photo you can tell someone situation, motivation and class. Well done Railwire Politruk. Due to your vigilance and ideological purity, you have extinguished the bonfires of the ground foam and ready to run bourgeoisie. Long live the modellers paradise, The Railwire Revolution.
Not fit to be a Comrade a$$hat
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Interesting modeling and interesting thread.
The gallery pics became a distraction, but they clearly illustrate that society has many subcultures that do not connect under normal conditions. So Mr. Thomas should get kudos for bring model railroading into an urban art space, and vice-versa.
That said, if we had more hipsters get into the hobby, maybe more of those 80's Model Power, Con-cor, and Life-Like engines and rolling stock that seem to still be lingering at train shows will finally get a home...