Information on Miniature Art

There is some confusion out there as to what Miniature art is. First of all, let me say that I am not an expert by any means on the subject- I am a newcomer to the field. When I first became interested in Miniature art, I found information kind of difficult to find... I really didn't know EXACTLY what miniature art was, and what separated it from small art. A lot of the drawings that I did at that time were small drawings- But many were technically not miniature drawings. I was set straight by a few miniature purists, and then did some research of my own. Based on that, I have come up with a definition of my own, which is what I personally consider miniature art to be. Remember, this is my definition- It is based on the definitions of many of the 'societies' and groups out there, the opinions of other artists, and other inputs.

  • Size-
    • Generally speaking, Miniatures are less than 24 square inches in area. Note, however, that some societies use 16 square inches as a standard. I am not going to argue the merit of one over another- I work a LOT smaller than either maximum.
  • Scale-
    • This is, in my opinion, one of the most important things that sets a miniature work apart from small art. Usually, the 1/6th scale is applied- the subject of the painting or drawing should be no larger than 1/6th the size of the actual item. This means that something that is 12 inches in real life should be no more than 2 inches in a miniature work. Of course, this is not as big of an issue with things like landscapes, nautical scenes, or any larger subject, but it becomes an issue with smaller subjects like human portraits or animals.
    • The scale of the support that the work is on should also be appropriate. Canvas should have a light texture. Paper should have a light tooth and little or no texture. Often, surfaces like Ivorine or masonite panels are used, as they give a smooth texture to work with.
  • Technique-
    • Like the subject, the technique should also be miniaturized. This means that brush strokes should be small, or not visible. Pencil strokes should be equally miniaturized, or blended so as to not be obvious.
  • Spirit-
    • This one is hard to define, but it is critical to seperating a miniature from a small work of art. Miniature work should be done in the 'spirit' of a miniature- The artist is intending from the start to create a miniature, not just a work of art that could pass as one. This allows a bit of flexibility on the part of a jurror- If something else is a bit off, for example the scale isn't quite right, the size is a bit too big, or the support a bit more textured than normal, they can look at it and see if it was created as a miniature- with the fine level of detail, attention to technique, and other important attributes of miniature art.