English

Noun

maquette ‎(plural maquettes)

1. A preliminary model or sketch used in preparation for making a sculpture.
   • 1993, Will Self, My Idea of Fun

     His presence would be an affront to my body; so, for it, there would be the rare delight of extinguishing an imperfect and distressed version of itself, a prototype, a maquette.

   • 2009, Joe Fig, Inside the Painter's Studio (page 51)

     And I thought, if I can imagine this place in real life, I can build it in the studio and then paint from the maquette as if it were a real landscape. In terms of process this was a breakthrough for me […]

French

Etymology

From Italian macchietta ‘speck, little spot’, diminutive of macchia ‘spot’, ultimately from Latin maculare ‘spot, stain, maculate’.

Noun

maquette f ‎(plural maquettes)

1. model, mock-up

Derived terms

• maquettiste