Podcast Summary: "Joe Macken Built New York"

Podcast: All Of It
Host: Alison Stewart (WNYC)
Air Date: February 10, 2026
Guests: Joe Macken (Artist, Truck Driver), Elizabeth Sherman (Curator, Museum of the City of New York)

Overview

This episode centers on Joe Macken, a New York truck driver whose 20-year hobby—painstakingly building a massive, detailed scale model of New York City and parts of New Jersey out of balsa wood, glue, and styrofoam—has become the subject of a new major exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York. Host Alison Stewart, together with museum curator Elizabeth Sherman, discusses the origins, process, and emotional impact of Joe's remarkable work, reflecting on art, memory, and the spirit of New York.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Joe’s Creative Journey

• How It Started

  • In 2004, inspired by a TV documentary about NYC, Joe began carving the RCA building from balsa wood on a whim.
    • “I just did it for...just to do it. And I finished carving it, and the next night I built another one. I built all of Rockefeller Center. And then I just kept going. I never stopped for 22 years.” (Joe, 01:18)
  • Joe had no prior woodworking or model-making experience.

• Early Experimentation

  • Before starting the city model, Joe made a bridge from tongue depressors, combining “the Brooklyn Bridge, the Williamsburg Bridge, and the Manhattan Bridge.”
  • The bridge was destroyed in a move, prompting Joe to start the NYC model:
    • “I'll just make something better. So I built New York City.” (Joe, 02:41)

The Project Takes Shape

• Scale and Growth

  • The model grew organically over 22 years, eventually reaching a 50ft by 30ft sprawl across 343 boards.
    • “When I put it together back in September...it was bigger than I thought. 50ft by 30ft is a lot bigger than you think.” (Joe, 09:47)
  • Built in pieces and stored like a puzzle; actual size and impact became clear only during final assembly.

• Techniques and Challenges

  • Early models (Manhattan) took longer due to complexity and skill-building:
    • “It took me 10 years to build Manhattan and 10 years to build the other four boroughs.” (Joe, 07:25)
  • Sourced building shapes and scale by working from online images, aiming for accuracy but with personal touches—such as retaining both the current One World Trade and the original Twin Towers.
    • “I tried to make a perfect replica of it...I kept the World Trade Center...because they're one of my favorite buildings.” (Joe, 10:19)

• Most Difficult Structures

  • The Empire State Building:
    • “Probably the Empire State Building because of all the different shapes and tiers...that was the only building out of the whole model that I had to fix when I...put it together.” (Joe, 15:13)

• Statue of Liberty

  • The only building Joe didn’t make by hand.
    • “I tried to do it maybe, like, four times, and the arm kept falling off...but when I went to Hobby Lobby and I saw a Statue of Liberty that was the perfect scale…I just bought it.” (Joe, 14:26)

From Basement to Museum

• Going Viral

  • Joe’s daughter encouraged him to share the finished work on TikTok; it quickly went viral (10M+ views).
    • “It was surreal. I really didn’t expect all that to happen…If it wasn’t for her, I probably would have...she inspired me to do it.” (Joe, 04:26)

• Curatorial Interest

  • Elizabeth Sherman learned about Joe through a colleague who had seen the TikTok video.
    • “It evolved from there...it was the labor, the love, the investment of time, the individual expression that really draws me to something.” (Elizabeth, 03:30)
  • The exhibit, “He Built This City,” opens Thursday, Feb. 12 (2026), and aims to spark emotional and civic reflection in viewers.

Artistry, Identity, and Meaning

• Is Joe an Artist?

  • Joe initially didn’t view himself as one:
    • “I never considered it, but now I guess I am...artists can be photographers, builders, sculptures...I think I am kind of an artist.” (Joe, 07:38)
  • Elizabeth expands the definition:
    • “It’s the creative expression in a physical form that he wants to share with other people, that he did with his hands, with materials, that makes him an artist.” (Elizabeth, 08:01)

• Emotional Impact

  • Elizabeth reflects on seeing familiar NYC landmarks miniaturized:
    • “Miniatures just always...do something to you...Standing in front of Jo's model is take in your city, take in New York City in all its vastness, in all its complexity.” (Elizabeth, 11:11)
  • The model “visualizes this layering of memory” that defines life in New York.
    • “A store might change...but we still layer our memories of the city...Jo has really done in Lower Manhattan is visualize this layering of memory.” (Elizabeth, 13:22)

• Homage to History

  • Joe’s model preserves now-lost landmarks (eg. the Twin Towers), moving numerous viewers and guests:
    • “This text says it's making me tear up, that Joe included the Trade Center. Thank you so much for that.” (Listener text, 15:42; acknowledged by host at 15:48)

Personal Side—Joe’s Life

• Balancing Work, Family, and Art

  • Joe worked as a full-time truck driver while gradually building the model.
    • “I would spend all day working, come home, help fix dinner...then sneak down into the basement...I'd be down there for four hours, falling asleep at the table.” (Joe, 05:57)
  • Relaxation and compulsion:
    • “The hard part was not making it. That's how much I love doing it.” (Joe, 06:35)
  • Always supported by his wife and family.

• Memories Influencing Creation

  • Inspired by childhood trips to the Queens Museum’s panorama:
    • “I remember sitting there going around it, and I was just amazed...I said, I'm gonna build one of these myself one day...And it wasn't until I was in my 40s that I started, but I kept my word.” (Joe, 13:27–14:01)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Virality and Humility

  • “It took me longer to download the app than it did to build the whole city.” (Joe, 04:26)

• On Building as Compulsion

  • “The hard part was not making it. That’s how much I love doing it.” (Joe, 06:35)

• Curator’s Emotional Reaction

  • “I got the chills...Standing in front of Jo's model is take in your city...through the magic of one person's artistic efforts.” (Elizabeth, 11:11)

• Listener’s Response to Twin Towers Inclusion

  • “It's making me tear up, that Joe included the Trade Center.” (Listener, 15:42)

• Host’s Closing Reflection

  • “Where do you want to visit New York now that you've built the whole darn thing?” – “Oh, yeah. I love all of New York City. I'll go anywhere. I love every borough.” (Alison and Joe, 18:07–18:15)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |------------------------------------------|------------| | Joe describes starting the project | 01:18 | | Discussion about scale/model’s size | 09:19 | | Emotional resonance of the model | 11:11 | | Artistry debate | 07:33–08:34| | TikTok virality story | 04:26 | | Twin Towers story & listener response | 10:41–12:35| | Joe’s inspiration from Queens panorama | 13:27–14:01| | On relaxing nature of model building | 05:57 |

Overall Tone & Takeaways

Warm, authentic, and deeply New York in both content and spirit, this episode reveals how art can arise from ordinary lives and how dedicated creativity can produce something moving and communal. It’s a tribute to the quiet passion, labor, and memory that shapes not just cities but the people who live within them. Joe Macken—reluctant artist, committed New Yorker—urges us to see the extraordinary in the everyday and to remember: “You can do this too.”