Proving that snow globes can be more than just a kitschy souvenir, the work of Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz from their Travelers series (which we first spotted over on 1000 Words), transports the viewer into a bleak, miniature world that’s chock full of strange scenarios tinged with dark humor. Partly inspired by the view from their farmhouse in the highlands of East Pennsylvania, each tiny tableau requires a painstaking amount of work to come to life.
First, Martin and Muñoz — who have been working together since 1994 — search model-making shops for figurines that they then cut up, paint, and reassemble. The other elements that make up their barren, wintry environments are molded out of plumbers’ epoxy and covered in water resistant resin. Water mixed with alcohol (a preservative) is then used to fill the globes. And that’s before they even think about snapping the final photograph.
Click through below to check out a gallery of their amazing work.
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 257 at Night, 2008. C-Print. 40 x 33 inches. Edition of 5.
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 265 at Night, 2008. C-Print. 40 x 33 inches
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 258, 2008. C-Print. 40 x 33 inches. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 218, 2007. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. Photograph 40 x 33 inches. C-Print. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 225, 2007. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. Photograph 40 x 33 inches. C-Print. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 175 at Night, 2006. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. Photograph 40 x 33 inches. C-Print. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 155, 2005. Photograph Fujichrystal paper. Paper size: 20 x 24 inches. Image Size: 16 1/2 x 20 inches. Edition of 50 + 5APs
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 204, 2006. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. Photograph 40 x 33 inches. C-Print. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz. Alone Together, 2005. C-Print. 40 x 33 inches. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz. Traveler 170 at Night, 2005. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. Photograph 40 x 33 inches. C-Print. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 186 at Night, 2006. Snowglobe multiple with Cerealart. Photograph 40 x 33 inches. C-Print. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 63 at Night, 2003. 24 x 20 inches. Edition of 50. 5 artists proofs
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 79 at Night, 2003. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. Photograph 40 x 33 inches. C-Print. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 48 at Night, 2003. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. C-Print 40 x 33 inches. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 156 at Night, 2005. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. C-Print 40 x 33 inches. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 78 at Night, 2003. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. C-Print 40 x 33 inches. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 53 at Night, 2003. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. C-Print 40 x 33 inches. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 46 at Night, 2003. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. C-Print 40 x 33 inches. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, The Well, 2004. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. Photograph 40 x 33 inches. C-Print. Edition of 5
Walter Martin and Paloma Muñoz, Traveler 126 at Night, 2004. Snowglobe. 9 x 6 x 6 inches. Photograph 40 x 33 inches. C-Print. Edition of 5