Talk about small scale modeling

[sjordan2]

I just saw a pretty amazing story on CBS Sunday Morning. Next time we get nervous about dealing with teeny PE parts or painting fine detail, think about Willard Wigan.

He creates sculptures and even diorama scenes with a microscope, using a fleck of gold or a grain of sand to build his pieces, which he mounts on the head of a pin or in the eye of a needle. His sculptures can be as small as 5 microns.

• He uses a hair from a dead fly as a paintbrush.

• He sculpted a figure of Charlie Chaplin on the tip of an eyelash.

• While creating the tea party scene from Alice in Wonderland inside a needle's eye, he accidentally inhaled Alice.

• To remain steady, he has to lower his pulse rate and work between heartbeats.(Not a bad tip overall; when precision is needed, like firing a rifle, inhale and hold your breath for a second.)

If this all sounds a bit odd, consider that he gets up to $150,000 for a sculpture.

http://www.willard-wigan.com/

http://www.dailyartfixx.com/2009/04/29/micro-sculptor-willard-wigan/

[CAL]

I still think this is the world record.

actual size

enlarged

Edited March 21, 2010 by CAL

[sjordan2]

  On 3/21/2010 at 5:03 PM, CAL said:

I still think this is the world record.

actual size

enlarged

That's awesome. Here's the IBM logo printed with 35 xenon atoms.

http://www.nanomedicine.com/NMI/Figures/2.25.jpg