This is a diorama inspired by New York's Canal Street. It doesn't just miniaturize the street though, it also includes the underside of New York City too—the labyrinth of subways that make this wonderful city move.
The detail on each layer is just incredible. Alan Wolfson, the man who built it, spent 18 months working on it and the whole diorama will be on exhibit at Otherworldly: Optical Delusions and Small Realities, at the Museum of Arts & Design in New York, starting June 7th. Wolfson wanted his diorama to feel like you've cut a slice out of Manhattan in the 1970's for everyone to see. If he added a little bit more dirt and a million more people, I think he'd have hit the money. [Alan Wolfson via BLDGBLOG]
The top is awesome though it's not entirely accurate of Canal st (the Rubber store is real, everything else is lifted from somewhere else)
A quarter to give you the sense of size
A hallway for depth
Not that much graffiti in the subways anymore!