This Artist Makes Miniature Stoner Art

For most stoners, the bigger the bud, the better the night. But according to 24-year-old artist Megh McCalla, good trips come in small packages. That’s probably because the Kansas-based artist, who goes by the moniker Level Heady, specialises in making miniature stoner art. 

Most of us just can’t get enough of the dainty and diminutive world of miniature models. From quirky teeny Apple computers to tiny tools that actually work to a miniature replica of a Star Wars arcade, we tend to gravitate towards tiny compact worlds best observed under a magnifying glass.

On a basic level, this might be because dioramas and dollhouses are just purely adorable. But science says that this could partly also be due to our deeper, darker desire for psychological control over small objects that become a safe space by conjuring up a tiny new world that operates on our whims and fantasies. Still, miniature art has the ability to add a whole new dimension to regular art, and especially so when it intersects with the surrealist world of stoner art. 

But as a departure from weed art that usually either tends to be packed with stoner humour or crafted using cannabis as an essential ingredient, Level Heady’s work emerges from the young artist’s struggle with mental health and unemployment in a pandemic-ridden world. 

“I was diagnosed with anxiety and OCD as a teenager, so I began smoking weed as a medicine to cope with that,” McCalla told VICE over a video chat. For McCalla, weed wasn’t just a means to get super high and laugh about silly shit; it was more an avenue for her to regain a sense of calm and control. A college dropout who found it difficult to concentrate on classes, making art while stoned became a way for McCalla to feel at ease with herself. 

“When I got into making resin and clay art in 2018, I wanted to make something that expresses me, but also has that positive energy. Seeing miniature versions of stoner [paraphernalia] makes me feel happy, while allowing me to express my personal style.” 

Her stoned art seshes soon turned into a rapidly growing collection of tiny joints, rolling paper, cannabis extracts, dabs, rolling trays, blazer torches and even vapes, all carved from clay, resin and paint. Then last year, amid the worst of the pandemic, McCalla was furloughed from her job as a waitress, which allowed her to turn her attention to artsy stoner goods instead. 

And just like that, McCalla’s stash instantly resonated with the stoners of the world, even if she believes some of them possibly ordered her work because they were too high and thought they were buying real weed. “There is no weed in my products, and you definitely shouldn’t smoke it,” she explained with a laugh, admitting that she’s currently researching a way to make her miniature pipes and vapes usable. 

“Most of my customers are stoners, but there are also some who buy my products to gift to their stoner friends,” she said. For McCalla, the cannabis extracts, rolling papers and strains she rolls out will remain purely high art. In the meantime, she plans to use her range of stoner-themed jewellery and keychains, which includes an entire set of rolling equipment fashioned into a pendant, to make a statement. She also regularly collaborates with small local businesses that make stoner paraphernalia, making miniature versions of cigars and smoking papers. 

“As a kid, I used to go look at colonial style miniature homes at the Memphis Toy House. So when I look at my miniature art, for me it’s a way to feel that deep sense of connection with my inner child.” 

While most people assume her art is effortlessly 3D printed, McCalla’s process is one that takes anywhere from a couple of hours to multiple days at her work station. After she has measured the real thing, she recreates a flat drawing on a piece of paper, then starts off with mimicking the design using clay.

For some products, such as a vaporizer she made for a brand called Puffco, she uses silicon moulds to shape her pipes. She then casts the final product in a layer of resin to give it a sheen, and then begins to paint and tape over to perfect it. “My favourite thing to mimic is the concentrates, especially the rosin (a cannabis extract that is eventually made into hash oil). Each cannabis strain can be as different and unique as a snowflake, so I enjoy the challenge that comes with recreating them.”

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