Jump to content

Team America at the 2018 Shizuoka Hobby Show (May 12,13)


Recommended Posts

I have put together a team of American model builders who are going to be attending this year's Shizuoka Hobby Show in Shizuoka, Japan.  For those of you who might not be familiar with the Shizuoka Hobby Show it is arguable the largest plastic model exhibition in the world.  The show itself is housed in two very large exhibition halls.  One of the halls is filled with professional trade displays from the various major Japanese model companies such as Tamiya, Hasegawa, Bandai, Aoshima,, and a few of the lesser companies as well.  The 2nd exhibition hall is where over 130 model clubs from all over Japan (along with a group of international modelers from Europe, ASEAN countries, and for the first time.....America) are set up to display their models.  Apart from the sheer size of this event the other thing which I think makes this show rather unique is the fact that there is no actual model "competition."  This show is really all about people of all ages getting together with like minded individuals to share in the passion of plastic model building.  Another thing which I think sets this show apart from other shows is the fact that there are hundreds of "non-model builders" to attend as spectators.  Anyway due to some unforeseeable circumstances several of our team members are not going to be able to attend and therefore I am looking for 1 or 2 builders from the U.S. to help fill in the gap.  If you are interested in learning more about this unique opportunity please email me directly at: GNomad781(at) gmail.com

 

Best regards,

Tim Lingle

Link to post
Share on other sites
22 hours ago, fulcrum1 said:

Do many Americans attend the show? I might go.

 

Hi Brian,

I've attended the 2016 & 2017 Shizuoka Hobby Shows and I've seen several visitors from different European and other Asian countries but not really whole lot of Americans.  I know the distance and cost is probably a huge factor in keeping most Americans from attending but from my own personal perspective the Shizuoka Hobby Show is totally worth the money & time.  I can't speak for certain but I sometimes get the sense that a lot of Americans tend to prefer participating in "competitive" events whereas culturally the same is not as true with the Japanese.

 

Cheers,

Tim

Link to post
Share on other sites
On 3/2/2018 at 1:05 PM, Scooter Man said:

... I can't speak for certain but I sometimes get the sense that a lot of Americans tend to prefer participating in "competitive" events whereas culturally the same is not as true with the Japanese.

 

Really? I've seen enough Japanese scale model competitions to think people in Japan like participating in competitive events. Don't U.S. clubs show off in non-competitive shows in Europe as well? The reason they never thought Shizuoka was worthwhile should be due to something else.

Link to post
Share on other sites
14 minutes ago, kaz said:

 

Really? I've seen enough Japanese scale model competitions to think people in Japan like participating in competitive events. Don't U.S. clubs show off in non-competitive shows in Europe as well? The reason they never thought Shizuoka was worthwhile should be due to something else.

Like I said....I cannot be certain why there are not more Americans who don't attend the Shizuoka Hobby Show. Maybe some of my fellow Americans could shed some light on the reason they don't attend. I guess considering the sheer size of the show in Shizuoka I am somewhat bewildered that more of them don't make the journey. Maybe it has more to do with the cost & distance - who really knows?? Anyway I was just taking a guess based on my own  unique personal experiences.

 

While over the past 25+ years I have attended countless number of modeling shows throughout the U.S. (including 7 or 8 trips to the IPMS National Conventions) Having said that, I have yet to attend a single model show in America where there is not some sort of "competitive element" included in the show.  

 

I personally don't care to participate in model competitions but I really enjoying going to them because I get to see so much "kool stuff" which other bulders have built & created.  From my perspective though I've always thought of modeling as a form of "art" and therefore enjoy the idea of having a "model exhibition" versus a "model competition."   Does that make sense?

 

On the other hand I'm guessing that the thrill/challenge of competing in a model competition might be a great source of motivation to some model builders☺

 

I have never been to any modeling shows in Europe so I cannot comment on these.  Albeit I have heard that there are quite a few club tables at the show in Telford, England show.

 

Anyway I'm just glad to be able to be a part of this great event

 

 

Link to post
Share on other sites
6 hours ago, Scooter Man said:

I have never been to any modeling shows in Europe so I cannot comment on these.  Albeit I have heard that there are quite a few club tables at the show in Telford, England show

 

Club displays are a normal part of most European shows - they generally make up more than half the show space. The next biggest space allocation is for vendors and the contest generally represents a much smaller element of a European show. American shows typically have a much greater emphasis on the contest and very little 'display only' space. I've enjoyed the US shows I've attended, in part because they have a different vibe to the events I'm used to. However, my preference is for displaying my models without the pressure of having to compete whenever I do so.

 

In terms of Scale ModelWorld (the Telford show)

We had over 170 club displays last year (most displays are allocated 48 square feet of table space, although some are smaller) - https://ipmsuk.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Scale-ModelWorld-2017-Branch-SIG-Listing.pdf

We also had more than 170 vendors in 2017 - https://ipmsuk.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Scale-ModelWorld-2017-Trader-Listing.pdf

General layout of the 2017 event - https://ipmsuk.org/ipms-scale-modelworld/scale-modelworld-floor-plan/

 

Regards,

John

Link to post
Share on other sites
34 minutes ago, John Tapsell said:

 

Club displays are a normal part of most European shows - they generally make up more than half the show space. The next biggest space allocation is for vendors and the contest generally represents a much smaller element of a European show. American shows typically have a much greater emphasis on the contest and very little 'display only' space. I've enjoyed the US shows I've attended, in part because they have a different vibe to the events I'm used to. However, my preference is for displaying my models without the pressure of having to compete whenever I do so.

 

In terms of Scale ModelWorld (the Telford show)

We had over 170 club displays last year (most displays are allocated 48 square feet of table space, although some are smaller) - https://ipmsuk.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Scale-ModelWorld-2017-Branch-SIG-Listing.pdf

We also had more than 170 vendors in 2017 - https://ipmsuk.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Scale-ModelWorld-2017-Trader-Listing.pdf

General layout of the 2017 event - https://ipmsuk.org/ipms-scale-modelworld/scale-modelworld-floor-plan/

 

Regards,

John

Hi John,

 

Thanks for that insight.  Seeing as how I really enjoy rubbing shoulders with modelers from all around the world I'd really love to visit the show in Telford and a couple of the other big shows in Europe one day!!  I think the thing I enjoy about visiting the club tables is that I can often times speak to the actual builder of a model that catches my eye!! I just don't get that same chance at the shows here in the U.S.😧

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...