The Baba Yaga Hut

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BACKGROUND While phenomenological philosophy (Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Martin Heidegger, Michel Serres) and neuroscience (Frank Wilson) assert that hand and thought are connected, creative practice research can offer insight into how knowledge is generated and emplaced through embodied and situated reflection-in-action (Donald Schön). There is little research into how this occurs at miniature scale, although experiences of “intimate immensity” (Gaston Bachelard) and imaginative escapism are observed across cultural theory (Susan Stewart), spatial theory (Juhani Pallasmaa) and interior architecture (Andrea Mina). CONTRIBUTION ‘The Baba Yaga Hut’ is a miniature sculptural work created during COVID-19 lockdown when movement and material access was limited; it uses folklore as a metaphor for empowerment in a time of social isolation. As creative practice-based research it explores ways of thinking through making at small scale: material sourcing and construction required embodied thinking through close observation, technical precision and problem-solving; and materials were foraged on walks using situated ‘urban flâneurie’ methods, resulting in a deeper understanding of small details in local places. It was found that embodied and situated processes of walking, observing and hand making can produce place across miniature, interior and urban scales. Together these methods for making in miniature can form a critically reflective practice to connect with local conditions and materially re-imagine experiences of place. SIGNIFICANCE The work is exhibited in Doll House: Miniature Worlds of Wonder (22 July 2021–1 Feb 2022), National Trust of Australia (Victoria), alongside significant historical and contemporary miniatures including the Kaleidoscope House by Laurie Simmons with furnishings by Cindy Sherman. Broader social impact and interest is indicated through the work featuring in The Age, Sydney Morning Herald, Women’s Weekly, and ABC radio as part of the exhibition.