Maquetes

Maquetes are small-scale physical representations of objects, buildings, landscapes, or systems, created to visualize form, massing, and spatial relationships. The term is widely used in Portuguese-speaking contexts and is also understood in others as a generic reference to hand-built or fabricated scale models. Maquetes are typically non-functional and focus on appearance, proportion, finishes, and context rather than operation.

Common uses

In architecture and urban planning, maquetes help designers study massing, orientation, daylight, wind flow, and how a project fits within its surroundings. They are used to communicate ideas to clients, stakeholders, and authorities, and to test feasibility or regulatory compliance. In film, theatre, and exhibitions, production maquettes assist in planning sets, props, and spatial relationships before full-scale construction. In education, maquetes support hands-on learning about geometry, design, and engineering. Model makers may produce interior, exterior, or environmental representations, as well as dioramas and city models.

Construction and materials

Maquetes are built at scales such as 1:50, 1:100, or 1:200, though other scales are common depending on purpose. Materials range from cardboard, foam, and basswood to plaster, resin, clay, and 3D-printed components, often enhanced with paints, textures, trees, people, and lighting to convey realism. Finishes vary from rough, conceptual textures to highly detailed surfaces.

Limitations and evolution

As visualization tools, maquetes emphasize perception and relationships over precise engineering details. With advances in digital modeling and virtual reality, physical maquetes are increasingly complemented or partly replaced by interactive digital representations, though they remain valued for tactile, perceptual insight and client communication.