Before the plastic massively produced dream houses that can be found anywhere, the dollhouses of the bygone era were rare, meticulously made, elaborate examples that captured the interior style and architecture of their time.
Taken on loan from the Victoria & Albert Museum of Childhood in London, The National Building Museum in Washington DC currently holds an exhibition entitled “Small Stories: At Home in a Dollhouse” with a collection of 12 examples of 12 historical dollhouses offering a glimpse into British domestic decor and residential architecture for the past 300 years.
All photos courtesy National Building Museum
1760: Tate Baby House
1830-1839: Killer Cabinet
1890: Amy Miles House
“The homes show developments in architecture and design, encompassing country mansions, the Georgian town house, suburban villas, newly-built council estates, and high-rise apartments. Many of the houses, their furniture and dolls have been specially conserved for the exhibition, with around 1,900 objects being restored over two years in the V&A Museum’s conservation department,” says the press release at Museum’s website.
1907: Betty Pinney House
1933: Peggy Lines House
1935: Whiteladies House
“Small Stories explores the history of British domestic life and provides a miniature-sized, up-close view of developments in architecture and design, from a Georgian town house and suburban mansion, to a 1960s high-rise and a Le Corbusier-style white villa. Displayed chronologically, most of the houses come complete with period furniture and interior fittings. Each house is displayed to reflect a particular moment in history. Visitors can use buttons alongside the cases to activate the audio narration and light up the characters as they talk.” says the press release of the Museum’s site.
1960: Jenny’s Home
Late 1980s to late 1990s: Hopkinson House
2001: Kaleidoscope House
Small Stories: At Home in a Dollhouse will be on view from May 21, 2016, through January 22, 2017.In case you are visiting DC Washington or you live there and you are fascinated with these elaborate dollhouses don’t skip the ongoing exhibition in the National Museum of building.