(Jimmy Landers - The Harville)
Speaking Volumes
by Pam North
Indiana resident Jimmy Landers is a builder of museum-quality architectural structures and a master miniaturist. There also may be other descriptions as well for someone who hand-makes 4,000 tiny books for a 2-story library, such as painstakingly diligent, detailed perfectionist. Retired from the corporate world as a regional manager for an international environmental corporation, he has chosen architectural miniatures in 1:12 scale as his new focus in his life. He made that transition in 2006 when his wife, Sue, asked him to build a dollhouse for her. His undertaking of that task was so successfully executed that he ended up selling the dollhouse for a very tidy sum, and to this day he still owes her that promised dollhouse. “My wife still would like to have kept one of my subsequent pieces in lieu of the dollhouse she never got to keep!” Landers remarked. Despite that, she totally supports his newfound hobby, which makes it easy for him to combine home life with his miniature crafting. “It’s not a problem, as this is all I do, and it takes up my spare time,” he explained.”I fully enjoy creating new structures.”
Like many miniaturists, he has no formal training in the miniature field. “I have taught myself the craft. I simply see the structures in my mind and start building them. I never make drawings or detail my work on paper.” Working in in a very small, open garage, he makes his pieces with the intention to sell, marketing his products through Chicago’s Tom Bishop Productions, Inc. show (reputedly the world’s largest miniature show featuring work by some of the finest miniaturists in the world), and through word-of-mouth. His prices range from $2,000 to $100,000. One special item he made was a commission piece for the wife of Boston Bruins owner, Jeremy Jacobs; it can be viewed on Jimmy’s website, along with many other of his fine creations.

Asked what he loves most about miniatures, he cited, “The reaction from people when they first see my work,” and that he finds his inspiration in his dreams and imagination. Like most artists, he wrestles with his own personal difficulties involved with working in miniature. “While working in the present moment of trying to translate the idea or look into the current structure, I know what it should look like, but trying to get that image or design into what I am working on can be a real challenge.” He has developed a real ability for using a hand-miter for cutting small moldings, and considers it his most valuable tool.

His most recent piece is called The Harville, and it is a 1:12 scale, 2-floor library. It came about as a result of the numerous and favorable comments on the library that was included as part of his previous piece, The Sahlberg, because he wanted to create a library by itself. The library was 90% scratch-made from leftover materials in his shop, with the other 10% purchased. The main materials used for the structure were all cherry and oak woods. He also made all of the 4,000 books lining the shelves of the library. Some works by other artists were included in the piece as well: Carl Sahlberg did  the electrical wiring; Barbara Sabia did the leaded glass panels; Ron Steckwich made custom brass brackets for ladder rails and door hardware; Linda Orleff of Lightning Bug made the one-of-a-kind chandelier; Penny Chambers provided the animal mounts; Sue Cook provided the fireplace mantel.

The techniques Jimmy used for creating the piece have become a bit of a blur in his memory. “They’re still there in my dreams maybe. Now that it is completed, I have no idea how I made it! The finished piece always amazes me, as I put nothing down on paper. I have to admit that the end result came out very close to what I had envisioned, with only a few tweaks. The hardest part about creating the piece was making 4,000 books from scratch, a very monotonous task! I made the library because I felt a need to do so, and my favorite part about it is how realistically it turned out. All of it was fun to create.”

Asked if he planned to sell the piece or keep it himself to display. Jimmy responded, “I hope to sell it at a future show at a price of $14,900.” The sale is likely, since Jimmy’s pieces are readily purchased by those who appreciate the detail in his craftsmanship, a quality he has embraced from the outset, despite his initial lack of experience. “I had no knowledge or interest in miniatures before I started creating them, and now find them extremely fascinating and fun to create. My brain is not wired to build small or simple structures; I love realism in miniature, and I especially like how others enjoy looking at them.” His obsession with realism means that he builds his structures simulating the “stick-built” methods used in actual, real-life buildings.

The future of miniatures somewhat concerns him, especially when viewed with the loss of many retail sources of miniatures and their related products. “The overall interest in miniatures is still very much alive. It is a shame that today’s youth does not seem to have as much enthusiasm as my generation does.”

In addition to his talent as an architectural builder, Jimmy also is the author of a newly-published pictorial book encompassing all of his works, and he has a second work in progress.

Jimmy is planning more creations for the future. “I have several room boxes planned for the next Tom Bishop show, and I believe I still have a major 60”-wide Tudor structure in me that needs to come out!”

Contact Information:
Name:  Jimmy Landers
Business name:  JL Signatures
Email:  JHLCSL@psci.net, jhcslanders@gmail.com
Website:  www.jlsignatures.com
Phone:  (812) 536-3898, (804) 832-6304, (317) 886-7430
Address:  10769 E. Hickory Ridge Ln, Huntingburg, IN 47542
Instagram:  jimmy_landers_jhlsignatures