By Isabel Ovalle
Passion for plastic modelling brought together a group of Qatar residents in June 2011. Their shared interest for this hobby led to the creation of the Doha Plastic Modelling Society, which has recently celebrated its second anniversary and gathers approximately 30 people.
The Doha-based club is part of the International Plastic Modellers Society (IPMS) and is now the number one place in Qatar for plastic modellers with any level of experience to get together. The group holds meetings once a month to explore plastic modelling through live demonstrations, discussions and competitions. Fans of plastic modelling come from all over the world, with members from America, Europe and Asia, headed by Colonel Hamad Al Hussaini, Society President.
Most participants began modelling at a very young age. James Barnett, Chairman and founding member, explained: “As a youngster I used to see aircraft at airports and airshows and wished to have replicas to hang from the ceiling in my bedroom. Plastic modelling became a past-time which allowed me to develop my creative skills and continue an interest in aviation.”
Modellers find that, when they move to Doha, they have more spare time, which comes in handy to “resurrect” the hobby, said Barnett. However, he added, “modelling now is far more complex for the serious hobbyist than it was during my childhood. It is not just a case of gluing a kit together and then adding some paint. Now there are ‘after-market’ accessories that make the original kits more accurate.”
“These new gadgets and accessories can make modelling a very time-consuming activity, as the modellers with the utmost highest standards strive for 100 percent accuracy,” added the founder of the club, who has been modelling since he was a kid.
Qatar Living, a popular website here, was the perfect platform for modellers to find each other and plant the seed of what is now the Doha Plastic Modelling Society. The first meeting was held in June 2011. Back then the founding members decided that meetings would allow them to collectively improve modelling skills by learning from each other’s expertise.
Finding materials and instruments proved to be a difficult task in Qatar, consequently members purchase many things through the Internet and have them shipped to Doha from the US, the UK or Japan, among other locations.
In each monthly meeting they discuss a different aspect of modelling that they practice. In June, the topic was how to paint wheels, while this month attendees learned about windows and transparent plastic. In addition, three times a year, the group holds a themed competition.“This entices modellers to move away from their zone of comfort and to try something perhaps unusual to them as most modellers have their own specialties,” emphasised Barnett.
At one of their monthly meetings, modellers joked that those who don’t know much about modelling run the risk of thinking it’s a juvenile hobby. However, they insist on the dedication, patience, skill and technique which are needed to give shape to these models, which can be as small as a finger nail or as long as one metre.
“The satisfaction of seeing models come through a process from plastic pieces in a box to a completed article is what gives us a buzz each month. For the model maker, a challenge completed; for the other members, a work of art to view,” explained Barnett.
Ron Brodersen is also a founding member of the group, who brought the hobby with him when he moved to Doha. “Most of us bring material from the US, UK or Philippines when we travel, also a hobby shop that sells materials opened here recently, which is a major step. We try to give them our support so they can grow and have a bigger clientele,” said the modeller.
The price of a basic model kit is of approximately QR30, while the more sophisticated and bigger models can cost up to QR750. To this total amount, expert modellers add up to QR400 in accessories and other materials that could be necessary.
Another member, who started making plastic models when he was a child as well, picked it up again many years later. “I have been in Doha for 11 months now and I brought all my equipment with me. Back in the UK I have 30 or 40 finished models, plus around 20 that I haven’t completed yet. I also brought 25 models to Doha,” he said.
Even though members come and go, friendships forged at IPMS Doha are long lasting. A great deal of the success of this club, highlighted its chairman, is that its run by members. “Members come and go, such is the nature of living in Qatar and although we have had to say goodbye to a few members already, we maintain contact with them,” concluded the chairman of the group.
