He was an African-American artist in a time when his race was often condemned by the general populace. The proclaimed “Toothpick King,” Stewart was a former messenger for WMVR Radio who sold some of his sculptures to famous historic names like Minnie Pearl, Liberace, and publisher Katherine Graham. The tower on the far right, in the rear, is a sculpture made in honor of a beloved beagle. Some are imaginary creatures, others are treehouses growing out of the fertile soil of his mind. This is a collection of various individual pieces that Bob has done. The result is a town that perpetually expands and changes art imitating life.
Bob’s Toothpick CityĪn ever-growing creation, Bob’s Toothpick City is a sculpture that he adds to on a regular basis, creating new buildings of various shapes that fit into the overall structure. Creating a sculpture of a living thing that seems ready to sway in the breeze and turn toward the sun is something more than precision.
Our love of this piece isn’t because of its complexity, but rather because it is instilled with such life. Thus, rather than building real replicas, Bob’s inventions come from his imagination, but are still architecturally sound. A single visit to Ripley’s museum helped solidify each of these facets with an eye to the fanciful. Later, while living in Hawaii, he would begin building tree forts, which is what led him to find a love of wood and construction. Hailing from Naples, Italy, Bob was reared around astounding architecture, which fascinated him as a child. The work that began it all, the original Toothpick City is a little more crowded, but also far more grand than his second outing, simply because it tackles the most daunting structures made by man celebrating size above all else. United States Air Force AcademyĪlso done to 1:164 scale, this structure emulates the strange, airy building found in Colorado Springs, CO. 60 total buildings makeup the Toothpick World, each one made to 1:164 scale for exactness. Big Ben sits beside the Brooklyn Bridge, with a toothpick Cutty Sark floating offshore. Made piecemeal, this isn’t a replica of any particular city, but rather landmarks from around the world put together in a glorious hodgepodge. He’s had 30 years of practice making toothpick sculptures, but only in the past 5 years, since his wife became ill, has he been doing it as a career. Stan tends to prefer to be thought of more as an architect than an artist, and his painstaking replicas prove that he certainly could be, though he’s admittedly not a student of the architectural sciences, just a serious fan. To celebrate what they do, we’ve rounded up the 15 finest toothpick sculptures from the 5 best artists in the game proving oral hygiene is just the beginning.
This has spawned a whole generation of tiny engineer craftspeople. Many artists who use the tiny picks as their medium of choice have learned that there’s great online interest in the work they create. While this drop in demand could have easily spelled death for the toothpick industry, it was saved thanks to the incredible, edible Internet. With all the options for dental picks and single-use floss loops on the market, very few people use toothpicks to actually pick their teeth anymore.
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