Understanding the world through models

Micro:Macro, models of insight and inspiration brings together 250 models used to teach architecture, medicine, engineering, science, art and mathematics. Essential teaching tools at the University of Sydney since the late 19th century, they magnify the miniscule and make the massive comprehensible.  Cells are magnified by thousands and buildings shrunk to the size of a tabletop. 

Before the digital age, physical models dominated the teaching sphere, giving tangibility to often abstract concepts. Clastic anatomy models able to be disassembled invented by Louis Auzoux in the 19th century, for example, were made with a high degree of accuracy. These were embraced by medical students throughout the world as an alternative to cadavers. 

The artisanship behind their production was often remarkable. Auzoux’s models demonstrated a mastery of papier-mâché. Similarly, Leopold and Ruben Blaschka’s glass works, also featuring in Micro:Macro, are celebrated for their artistry as much as their resemblance to the sea life they replicate. 

“Digital platforms have partly replaced physical models but Micro:Macro celebrates many of the models as works of art and ingenuity,” said Chau Chak Wing Deputy Director and exhibition curator Dr Paul Donnelly

Showing in the museum’s largest exhibition space, the Ian Potter Gallery, Micro:Macro also includes models, such as aeronautical models, which haven’t been usurped by newer technologies.

Model aircraft remain an important component of teaching aeronautical engineering, said Professor K C Wong from the University’s Faculty of Engineering. His own PhD project, a model produced in the mid-1980s, was a precursor to drone development in Australia and is part of Micro:Macro. The development of models for testing in wind tunnels remains a useful practice for students, he said.

Students continue to use and build physical models to test how aircraft respond to different flying conditions.  

“We couldn’t do these tests on an actual aeroplane, where safety is paramount,” said Professor Wong. “In flight simulation, digital tools are increasingly important. But unless students understand the physical constraints of flight, they aren’t as well prepared for industry.” 

Models of structures remain relevant to teaching and learning architecture too – the exhibition includes models created by first-year architectural students. 

“We have an innate fascination with the miniature, particularly in architecture, where models give students the benefit of seeing in 3D how buildings change with the light and their environment,” said Dr Donnelly. “There’s no indication of that changing over time.” 

Micro:Macro is on at the Chau Chak Wing Museum until 29 June 2025.