Fun4Change is proud to present our first Featured Artist, Doug Coffey. Doug is a master craftsman at locomotive dioramas, and operates a motorcycle shop in Ontario. He has spent many years creating a vast collection of intricately detailed train tables that could rival the display at Roadside America. Below is a small selection of Mr. Coffey’s work, a link to his Fun4Change gallery, and you can find all of his work in its entirety at his site dougcoffey.com . We’re happy to welcome Doug to the Fun4Change community.
Copyright 2018, Doug Coffey.
Interviewer: First of all, congratulations on becoming Fun4Change’s very first Featured Artist. You’re helping us to set the bar for the standard of craftsmanship, and contribution to the hobby that we want to promote through this part of the page. Onto the questions:
What got you into creating train dioramas, and how long have you been at it?
Doug: I got an HO scale electric train in 1963. Ten years later I took it out of storage and decided to set it up in my new home. My wife picked up a couple Model Railroader magazines and that was it. I was on a role.
Are your landscapes replicas of actual locations, or creations you made up?
Doug: Places I make up.
Do you ever try to convey a message with your tables? What are you feeling when you’re in the midst of making a new creation?
Doug: No. I just get a desire to create something I dream up with my mind’s eye and go for it.
Copyright 2018, Doug Coffey.
Where do you get your inspiration for your tables? Who would you say was the biggest influence on your train hobby?
Doug: Inspiration comes from the work of other modelers and photo scenes I find on Facebook groups, Pinterest. books or magazines.
How did you fund your collection? Would you ever sell any of it? If so, how do you price your art?
Doug: I’m self employed and do quite well so I funding isn’t really an issue for me.
I have no plans to sell. That will be a task for someone else after I die.
Copyright 2018, Doug Coffey.
Would you say that hobbies like ours and others that artists put extensive meticulous effort into, should be classified as Fine Art?
Doug: We are artists. I consider myself a funk artist. My art functions.
Well put. What motivates you to see a project through when it gets tedious?
Doug: Finishing is when everything pops and the sense of personal gratification is realized.
Copyright 2018, Doug Coffey.
Aspiring hobbyists often wish they could achieve the level of detail that you put into your work. Do you have any advice for those just starting out, or for those who are struggling with their projects?
Doug: If one is tenacious, one will succeed. You have to want it badly enough to drive yourself to do your best.
Thank you Doug, for your contribution to the hobby, and for sharing your work. You can check out Doug’s premier gallery, and don’t forget to stop by Doug’s site as well.
Copyright 2018 Fun4Change.com, all rights reserved. All images used with permission of Doug Coffey. Reproduction is strictly prohibited without permission from Doug Coffey at dougcoffey.com
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