The Latest Breaking News from Joe Macken

He Built This City Exhibition: Truck driver’s model joins museum; tiny New York spans 1,350 sq ft

Joe Macken has dedicated 21 years to building a detailed model of New York City by hand. He began this project in 2004, inspired by a childhood visit to the Queens Museum. The completed model, covering approximately 1,350 square feet, consists of over 340 individual sections. In February 2026, the…

The Times of India · Sep 29

In 2004, truck driver Joe Macken began with a tiny Rockefeller Center building; more than two decades later, his vast handmade New York model entered a city museum

Joe Macken began a basement project in 2004, crafting miniature buildings from balsa wood. This hobby evolved into a vast scale model of New York City over two decades. The impressive model, now housed at the Museum of the City of New York, spans fifty-seven by twenty-seven feet. Visitors can…

The Economic Times · Sep 21

Truck driver’s 800,000-piece model of NYC draws big crowds to museum

When the project was complete, his daughter persuaded him to share the sprawling basement creation on TikTok

The Independent UK · Sep 18