In his phenomenological study of architecture, The Poetics of Space, philosopher Gaston Bachelard describes a key difference between how the minuscule and the gigantic engage our minds. “A bit of moss may well be a pine, but a pine will never be a bit of moss,” he writes. “The imagination does not function with the same conviction in both directions.” By serving to conjure possible worlds, tiny items have become objects of fascination and even obsession throughout history, from portraits gifted as signs of affection in Tudor and Stuart England to dollhouses and Legos used by children as toys or educational tools.

The otherworldliness of miniatures manifests itself in myriad ways. Stuffed animals and action figures turn into children’s friends as narratives are created around t...