Twining Models

Twining Models was a specialist model-making firm based in Northampton, England. Founded in 1920 by Ernest W. Twining, the company developed from work Twining undertook as a subcontractor to Bassett-Lowke, the prominent British engineering and model-making company. Although Twining Models frequently produced work that was marketed under the Bassett-Lowke name, it remained an independent business rather than a formal division or subsidiary of Bassett-Lowke. The firm concentrated on high-quality display models enclosed in glass cases. Its work covered architectural, industrial, and transport subjects, and it became recognized as one of the leading British model makers of its period. Twining Models was deliberately small in scale, generally employing only a handful of craftsmen, but its limited size supported highly specialized and detailed work. Across its approximately forty-seven-year existence, the firm is reported to have produced about 400 models. Before the Second World War, the company worked on a varied group of commissions. Its activities included models associated with Queen Mary's Dolls' House, the miniature residence designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and now preserved at Windsor Castle. Twining also had specialist expertise in stained-glass work and produced astronomical telescopes, demonstrating that its capabilities extended beyond conventional architectural miniatures. After the war, the company's work increasingly reflected reconstruction and industrial development. It produced planning models for the redevelopment of cities damaged by bombing, as well as models of power stations and other industrial projects. These objects served practical presentation and planning purposes, allowing proposed buildings, infrastructure, and urban schemes to be examined in three dimensions. Twining sold the business in 1940. It subsequently operated under the name Twining Models (E. H. Clifton) Ltd. until 1967. E. H. Clifton had worked for Twining from the time he left school and had become a director before the original firm was established; following the 1940 sale, he ran the business through its later decades. The available reference material does not identify the buyer in 1940 or provide evidence of a successor brand after the company ceased trading. Twining Models is therefore best understood as a historically significant but defunct British craft and industrial-model-making firm rather than a modern consumer brand.

Twining Models was established in Northampton in 1920 by Ernest W. Twining. Its origins lay in subcontracting work that Twining carried out for Bassett-Lowke. Bassett-Lowke was an important British model and engineering business, and Twining Models undertook much of its early work for that company. Finished models were often sold or presented under the Bassett-Lowke name, but Twining Models was never formally part of Bassett-Lowke. From the beginning, Twining's firm focused on detailed, professionally presented models rather than mass-market toys. Its principal format was the high-quality model displayed in a glass case. The company's commissions covered architecture, industrial installations, and transport subjects. Its small workforce consisted mainly of skilled craftsmen, and the company retained this workshop character throughout its existence. Despite its modest size, it acquired a reputation as one of Britain's foremost model-making firms. Its prewar work included a number of models for Queen Mary's Dolls' House. The dolls' house was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and is now held at Windsor Castle. Twining Models also worked with stained glass, an area in which the firm was regarded as expert, and produced astronomical telescopes. These commissions show that the business combined model-making with broader abilities in miniature construction, specialist materials, and technical fabrication. The business was sold in 1940. After the sale, it continued as Twining Models (E. H. Clifton) Ltd. E. H. Clifton had joined Twining as a school-leaver, later became a director, and took responsibility for operating the company in its later form. The available account does not state the identity of the purchaser or describe the transaction's financial terms. Following the Second World War, Twining Models participated in the visual planning of reconstruction and industrial development. It made planning models for the redevelopment of cities damaged during the war, along with models of power stations and other industrial projects. These models were not merely decorative: they could communicate proposed schemes to planners, officials, clients, and the public, and could help viewers understand the relationship between buildings, infrastructure, and surrounding areas. The firm remained small, normally employing only a handful of craftsmen. Its output was nevertheless substantial for such a workshop, with approximately 400 models made over its forty-seven-year history. Twining Models operated under the E. H. Clifton name until 1967, when the business's recorded history ends. No reliable evidence in the supplied material identifies a continuing successor, current owner, or active commercial operation. The company is consequently treated as defunct. Its historical importance rests on the quality and range of its specialist work and on its contribution to British architectural, industrial, and transport model making.

• 1967

  Operations end

  [1]Twining Modelsen.wikipedia.org

  The firm was recorded as operating under the E. H. Clifton name until 1967, marking the end of its documented business history.

• 1945

  Postwar planning and industrial work

  [1]Twining Modelsen.wikipedia.org

  In the postwar period, the firm produced planning models for bomb-damaged city redevelopment and models representing power stations and other industrial developments.

• 1940

  The business is sold

  [1]Twining Modelsen.wikipedia.org

  Twining Models was sold and subsequently operated as Twining Models (E. H. Clifton) Ltd., with E. H. Clifton running the later business.

• 1920

  Twining Models is founded

  [1]Twining Modelsen.wikipedia.org

  Ernest W. Twining established the model-making firm in Northampton, England, following earlier subcontracting work connected with Bassett-Lowke.

A small, specialist British maker of finely detailed presentation and display models, positioned through craftsmanship, technical accuracy, and the ability to represent architectural, industrial, transport, and planning projects.

• Architectural display models

  Architectural models

  Twining Models was especially associated with finely made architectural models presented in glass cases. These miniatures represented buildings and architectural schemes for display, presentation, and possibly planning purposes. The firm's reputation rested on detailed craftsmanship and on its ability to communicate the appearance and arrangement of a proposed or existing structure through a carefully constructed three-dimensional model.

• Planning models

  Urban redevelopment models

  After the Second World War, Twining produced planning models for the redevelopment of cities damaged by bombing. These models helped visualize proposed urban changes and could be used by planners, public authorities, clients, and other stakeholders to understand large-scale relationships between buildings, streets, and infrastructure.

• Industrial presentation models

  Industrial and power-station models

  The firm made models of power stations and other industrial developments. Such work required the representation of complex structures and equipment in a compact, legible form. These models extended Twining's practice beyond domestic or civic architecture into technical and infrastructure-related commissions.

• Historic architectural miniatures

  Queen Mary's Dolls' House models

  Twining Models made a number of models for Queen Mary's Dolls' House, the miniature residence designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and now kept at Windsor Castle. The surviving reference material does not specify the individual objects or their exact dates, but the commissions form part of the firm's prewar portfolio.

• Specialist craft work

  Stained-glass work

  Stained-glass work was among the firm's prewar activities, and Twining Models was described as having particular expertise in this area. The available material does not identify specific commissions or surviving examples.

• Scientific instruments

  Astronomical telescopes

  Twining Models also produced astronomical telescopes before the Second World War. The source material confirms this activity but does not provide model numbers, technical specifications, or information about whether the telescopes were commercial products or commissioned instruments.

• 1940

  Continuation under E. H. Clifton ownership or managementStrategy

  Background

  Twining Models was sold in 1940 after two decades of independent specialist model making and subcontracting work associated with Bassett-Lowke.

  Action taken

  The business continued as Twining Models (E. H. Clifton) Ltd., with E. H. Clifton, a former employee and director, running the firm.

  Aftermath

  The company continued producing architectural, industrial, transport, and planning models until its documented operations ended in 1967.

  Source

1. 1Twining Modelsen.wikipedia.org
2. 2E. W. Twining, Modelmaker, Artist & Engineerworldcat.org