Co-founder Barbara Marshall, who made her first of many miniature purchases in the 1950s, started the Toy & Miniature Museum with her friend and avid collector of dollhouses, Mary Harris Francis. The miniatures and dollhouses may seem like simple playthings, but the items in the museum epitomize fine art.

Just ask silversmith and artist Peter Acquisto. More than 100 pieces of his finest miniature silver work is displayed at the museum. He will also be in town July 12 and 13 to share his artistic vision and talk about his work. The Tuesday event is a members-only reception and talk. On Wednesday, he'll be giving a public lecture at 11 a.m. and two gallery tours at 1 p.m. and 2 p.m.

Laura Taylor, the museum educator, says the pieces are part of the museum’s marvels. “We look at our collection as an art collection. These artists make their living through this art; it just happens to come in a miniature form.” The artist series with the miniature artists is in its second year. In June, Linda LaRoche and James Hastrich came to the museum to share their fine-scale miniatures. Taylor says she wants visitors to see a serious and thriving art form. “We are proud to be the best collection of this type of work. Visitors will have the unique opportunity to interact with the artists,” she says. The series will feature private receptions for members, public lectures, tours and demonstrations. Taylor says Acquisto will also be part of the Adventures in Learning for the Wednesday family-friendly activities.

Acquisto attended the University of New Mexico and became interested in jewelry.  He was a jeweler for 10 years before embarking on a career in miniature art.  He made his first miniature piece in 1980. Acquisto works today in sterling silver and occasionally 18K gold.  All his pieces are numbered and trademarked.  He prefers to make miniatures in the style of American and English silversmiths from the 16^th to the 18^th centuries. His preferred scales are 1/12^th and 1/24^th.   

“My sister was living in Seattle and collecting miniatures. When she returned to New Mexico, she brought them back home. I didn’t think they were well done so she challenged me to make some. I ignored her until a friend was going to the miniature show in Chicago,” he says. “I made two pieces and she came back with several orders. Shortly thereafter, I switched from making jewelry to miniatures.”

He became an International Guild of Miniature Artisans fellow in 1984. The IGMA was founded to promote fine miniatures as an art form; to increase awareness and appreciation of high-quality workmanship through public education; to recognize and honor qualified artisans and encourage work of highest quality; and to encourage the development of new artisans. Besides being a IGMA Fellow, Acquisto is also an Academy of Honor member of the National Association of Miniature Enthusiasts and was awarded the Mel Prescott award. He has been an instructor for the guild school held in June at the Maritime Academy in Castine, Maine for the past 12 years.

Some of Acquisto’s inspiration comes from silversmiths like Paul Storr, the British silversmith sculptor and designer whose work graced the tables of King George III. “I like the Georgian styles and have made many replicas. I like his style. However, I pick things that appeal to me,” he says.

Being a jeweler, Acquisto already had many of the tools necessary for making miniatures. “I modified the tools somewhat, but it’s still my jeweler tools and machinist tools that I depend upon. I made smaller stamps and refined some with little files.” Acquisto started making full-sized furniture with his father as a youth. “My dad taught me how to carve. I really have combined everything I have learned over the last 45 years to reproduce antique pieces in 1/12^th scale. It is something from the past. There is a lot of history that gets replayed in miniature rooms and houses. There are lots of fun things and comical things. There are many ways to display miniatures; it is the collector’s vision.”

Acquisto says he keeps trying new things. He recently finished a scale replica of the Kentucky Derby trophy. It took about six weeks to make. “I like when people ask questions and seek out answers. I like to explain how I do what I do. When you make miniatures, especially using a large piece as inspiration, the shape is already established so you have to start thinking about shrinking the piece. In the last 31 years, I have learned that a large part of making miniatures is problem solving.”