Once you鈥檝e been in Tucson long enough, standout local signs start becoming visual landmarks for the part of the community you鈥檙e in.
When you see The Loft鈥檚 sign, you鈥檙e in central Tucson; when you see Ugly But Honest, you鈥檙e in the Five Points area; and when you come up on Silver Saddle Steakhouse, that鈥檚 your sign to make sure you鈥檙e in the correct freeway lane.
Miniature versions of these iconic signs are now on display at The Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures through early next year.
Miniatures artist Jorge Ruiz has been working on tiny versions of signs and buildings of his hometown of Nogales, Sonora, and of Tucson, since he鈥檚 lived in the Old Pueblo about six years.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 really like building models in school because they had to be perfect, but once I was free from that expectation I realized that I could just do what I wanted with them,鈥 Ruiz said.
Growing up, Ruiz loved drawing and crafting, but wanted to still have a practical industry to look forward to when he chose his major in college. He studied engineering at the Universidad Aut贸noma de Nuevo Le贸n in San Nicol谩s de los Garza, Mexico.
Ruiz lived in his college town for about 10 years after graduating before moving to Tucson for better job opportunities, he said. He now works for Pima County as a design specialist, and crafts miniatures on the side.
Patrons walk behind the case holding the miniature art of Jorge Ruiz, including the sign for the Silver Saddle Steakhouse at the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures. The show, Signs of Community: Signage of the Old Pueblo in Miniature, features about a dozen pieces from throughout Tucson, shrunken but detailed, down to the graffiti.
鈥淕rowing up, my family always visited Tucson, mainly for the shopping,鈥 Ruiz said. 鈥淚 always liked Tucson growing up, and I think I wanted to move here, but didn鈥檛 think of it as a reality.鈥
Ruiz moved to Tucson about a year before the COVID pandemic started, he said, so it was hard at first to get to know people and call it his community.
鈥淥ver the last few years, I鈥檝e been kind of opening up to the city, and I feel the city is also opening up to me, in a way,鈥 Ruiz said.
ABOVE: Jazmin Fuentes gets some shots with Jacob Fuentes of the miniature signs from The Loft Cinema and Ugly But Honest Wanslee Auto Sales during a reception for artist Jorge Ruiz at the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures.
What started as a project born from passion for community, and a bit of boredom during his free time, has transformed into Ruiz鈥檚 first museum exhibit.
The Museum of Miniatures started displaying Signs of Community: Signage of the Old Pueblo in Miniature on July 8 and held a members-only special event July 10 as an official celebration.
鈥淪howcasing local talent was really important to our founders, Patricia and Walter Arnell, and so amplifying emerging voices really speaks to the heart of our museum鈥檚 mission,鈥 said museum curator Emily Wolverton.
ABOVE: A miniature by artist Jorge Ruiz of Acosta Radio TV, down to the rust, cracks and devices in the window, at the Signs of Community: Signage of the Old Pueblo in Miniature exhibit now at the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures. LEFT: An 蜜聊直播 Daily Star newspaper rack, one of the tiny pieces created by artist Jorge Ruiz at the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures exhibit.
The exhibition is a love letter to Tucson, Wolverton said, because all of the places Ruiz features have decades-old memories associated with them.
鈥淭hese are places where people have gone to celebrate birthdays, first dates and first jobs, and so for people living here in this community, they might have a whole lifetime of memories associated with this exhibit,鈥 Wolverton said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very special.鈥
Ruiz, while passionate about imperfections, tried to get the pieces he replicated as close to the original as possible. The Ugly but Honest pole maintains its octagonal shape with rust and faded graffiti at the base, and the Silver Saddle Steakhouse sign has 600 3D-printed lightbulbs: 300 on each side, inserted one by one.
鈥淭his is something that was made decades ago, and it鈥檚 still standing up without being replaced,鈥 Ruiz said. 鈥淚t almost seems like it becomes a part of the family. It鈥檚 an object that鈥檚 been there for so long, it鈥檚 something else now.鈥
Jeff Acosta, a coworker of Ruiz and a museum patron, came to see the museum pieces.
鈥淗alf of these places, I鈥檝e been to personally,鈥 Acosta said. 鈥淩occo鈥檚, The Loft, I鈥檓 familiar with a lot of this stuff. When it鈥檚 in your neighborhood, you appreciate it differently.鈥
An 蜜聊直播 Daily Star newspaper rack, one of the tiny pieces created by artist Jorge Ruiz at the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures exhibit.
Another museum visitor, Patrician McCarthy, described the museum as a gem and loved that Ugly but Honest, a landmark in her neighborhood for decades, is being featured in the exhibition.
鈥淚 think the whole place is fabulous,鈥 McCarthy said. 鈥淏ut doing the signs, I think that evokes a lot of the emotion from people who live here. I think they鈥檝e done a wonderful job.鈥
The exhibition runs through Jan. 11, 2026. The Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures, 4455 E. Camp Lowell Drive, is open Tuesdays through Sundays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults, $9 for children ages 4 to 17 and $13 for students, seniors and military.