Now On View: The Souvenir Building Collection of Joe Kopitz (June 1 – Sept. 30)

Joe Kopitz has been building his small sovereignty of city real estate for 30 years. The Empire State building, the Chrysler building, the Woolworth building, the Williamsburgh Savings Bank building, the Pan Am building, and Grand Central Terminal are just a few of the iconic buildings that number among his vast holdings. Only here will you see the St. Louis Gateway Arch, the Washington D.C. skyline, and the Pentagon mere inches apart! Lucy the Elephant makes an appearance too, all the way from Margate City, NJ. How many places can you recognize in this mini metropolis?

Joe is the President of the Souvenir Building Collectors Society – the official organization of collectors formed in 1994.  It currently has members from all over the globe.  According to their website, a souvenir building is the 3-D miniature version of an actual building, monument, statue, bridge, dam, etc.  They can be made of pot metal, ceramic, wood, cast iron, plastic, pewter, marble – almost anything.  They make our hearts beat faster when we find them.