Shrinking Stockholm

The 157-sq-ft replica was the second most- visited exhibit in Sweden last year.

The design firm Mitekgruppen (Mitek-group) used aerial photos and drawings to create the city's buildings in a CAD program. Where aerial photos and drawings weren't available, the designers relied on Google Earth to create the necessary CAD files. Files were sent to the 3D printer to produce models of the buildings. The buildings, bridges, cars, boats, trains, and trees were hand painted. The model was completed in less than six months.

"With the Dimension 3D printer and images we gathered from Google Earth, a project that could have taken years was completed in a matter of months," says Martin Jonsson, co-owner and designer at Mitekgruppen.