with Miss Mary Jo

Three of the rooms (this, the Tudor Bedroom, and the City Drawing Room) are near duplicates of museum-quality miniatures created by Mrs. James Ward Thorne, whose works are on permanent display at the Art Institute of Chicago. Craven masterfully replicated the detailed oak paneling and deep bay window overlooking a painted garden.

Inspired by local Arizona architecture, the tiled patio is complete with gardens and trees surrounded by stucco walls, decorative grilled windows, a carved wood balcony, rattan furniture, and a panorama of the desert beyond.

Craven embellished this formal room with reeded pilasters, a mantel with recessed breast above, an architectural double doorway flanked by niches, and two arched windows opening to a balustrade balcony.

This high-ceilinged room features a large window that looks out onto a painted view of the city. At one end there’s a balcony with an intricately carved wood railing, and under the window is a low, two-tier bookcase, a studio easel, and a reproduction of Mrs. Craven’s grand piano.

Room #1 is a reproduction of Craven’s studio on his property at 135 Intervale Road in Mountain Lakes. The Arts and Crafts-style living room highlights the open-timbered ceiling and carved wooden mantel. A large set of French doors looks out on an arranged garden diorama.

Edgar M. Craven lived in Mountain Lakes and worked as a banker in New York City before retiring to his second career as an artist. He elevated miniature-making to an art form, creating settings of exquisite detail and character while using the scale of 1 inch to 1 foot.