Friday, December 30, 2011

Wall-mounted kinetic sculpture by Gina Kamentsky

Check out this awesome new kinetic sculpture by Gina Kamentsky. This piece is titled Si C C señor!. See (oops, now I'm doing it!) if you can figure out why.

I love how all of the various found objects are integrated in this work of art. An assemblage of unrelated things not only seem to belong together, but move together in diverse and interesting ways. Just look at how beautiful the lines are against a wall:

Horizontal format kinetic sculpture by Gina Kamentsky

See more kinetic sculpture by Gina Kamentsky on her web site.


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Thursday, December 29, 2011

Junghans clock with spinning acrobat automaton

I've done a few posts about sand-powered acrobat toys. The falling sand is caught by something that looks like a water wheel, causing it to turn. The wheel is mounted on an axle, one end of which terminates in a small crank on to which an articulated acrobat figure is placed. The spinning axle causes the acrobat to do all sorts of athletic-looking moves. The Junghans acrobat clock shown here works in a very similar manner -- minus the sand, of course. This beautiful piece was restored by the mechanically multi-talented Kevin Wright.

See more restorations and original mechanical creations by Kevin Wright on his web site.


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Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Electromagnet-driven wooden gear clock

Here's a little video featuring The Electra, another clock designed by Clayton Boyer. Like his other clocks, this one is made almost entirely of wood. What makes it unusual is that rather than being powered by a falling weight, it is driven by a hand-wound electromagnet. There is a shot in the video showing the magnet wire being wound around the core with the aid of a hand drill. Here is a photo showing the ratchet mechanism that moves the time train forward with every full swing of the pendulum:

Electromagnet driven wooden gear clock

You can see more clock designs by Clayton Boyer on his web site.


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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Article about the Maillardet drawing automaton

Article about the Maillardet drawing automaton
Charles Penniman with the Maillardet drawing Automaton - © 2009 Dug North

The New York Times has published a wonderful article on the writing and drawing automaton that resides at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. Like so many of us, The Times has been inspired by the new movie Hugo, which features an automaton as a central part of the story. The automaton, in turn, was the original inspiration for the one in the movie. I was lucky enough to visit the museum and see the automaton first hand in the summer of 2009. Here is my blog post about seeing the Maillardet automaton in person.

Created around 1800 by Henri Maillardet, the clockwork automaton depicts a young boy. It is capable of rendering four drawings and writing three poems in a beautiful flowing script.

The Times article highlights some of the key players who were instrumental in bringing the machine back to life in recent years. Of particular note is Charles Penniman, who has studied and cared for the automaton for a long time. Author Brian Selznick, creator of the Hugo story, was also important in reviving interest in the machine and bringing in the mechanical genius of Andrew Baron back in 2007. Baron was able to restore the automaton, which had fallen out of working order over time. We owe a lot to these people and the others behind-the-scenes who have preserved this incredible machine.

Though it is not set into motion often, the automaton is on display at The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. It remains a mechanical masterpieces and historical treasure.

Here is a link to the New York Times article on Maillardet's drawing automaton at the Franklin Institute.


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Saturday, December 24, 2011

Tiki Drummer mechanical toy

Tiki Drummer mechanical toy

Here's a fun little toy. When you push the button the little mechanical drummer figure drums in time to music programmed into the toy. Customers on Amazon seem to love it!

Here is a where you can get the mechanical Tiki Drummer toy


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Friday, December 23, 2011

Automata collection at the Rocca Borromeo, Italy

Automata collection at the Rocca Borromeo, Italy

The Rocca Borromeo of Angera is located on the south side of the Alps.
Among many other historical treasures, some rooms of the castle house the Doll and Children's Clothes Museum. A large section is dedicated to mechanical automata dating from the nineteenth century. All of the automata are fully functioning!

From the Rocca Borromeo tourism web site:

The Doll Museum is, to this day, one of the most important exhibition areas in Europe dedicated to dolls. As well as the prestigious items already exhibited, in June 2002 a new section was opened, dedicated to French and German automatons dating from the 19th and 20th centuries. The exhibits, which are true mechanical wonders and date from between 1870 and 1920, come from the Petit Musée du Costume in Tours, France and once formed part of the famous collection belonging to Robert and Gisèle Pesché.

Here is where you can learn more about the automata collection at the Rocca Borromeo.

[ Thanks to the Crandall family! ]


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Thursday, December 22, 2011

The Victorian Model Workshop animated displays

The Victorian Model Workshop designs and builds original mechanical figures, automata, and animated displays for private collectors and commercial customers. Take a look at the video to see some of their marvelous creations.

Here's more information about The Victorian Model Workshop.

[ Thanks Karin! ]


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Wednesday, December 21, 2011

KINETICA ART FAIR 2012 dates announced!

KINETICA-ART-FAIR-2012.jpg

The dates for KINETICA ART FAIR 2012 have been announced and tickets have already gone on sale. The fair, produced by Kinetica Museum, joins galleries, art organizations and other groups from around the world who focus on kinetic, electronic, robotic, sound, light, time-based and multi-disciplinary new media art, science and technology.

From the Kinetica Museum web site:

The fair provides an international platform for museums, collectors, curators and the public to view and buy artworks in this thriving and advancing field. Alongside the fair Kinetica curate a themed feature exhibition, screenings, tours, talks, workshops and performances.

Here are some amazing photographs from the 2011 Kinetica Art Fair.

Event: KINETICA ART FAIR 2012
Dates: February 9th - 12th, 2012
Location: Ambika P3 Marylebone Rd, London, NW1 5L
Web site: http://www.kinetica-artfair.com/


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Tuesday, December 20, 2011

21 rotary tool tips and tricks for makers

21 rotary tool tips and tricks for makers

My latest installment of Dug’s Automata Tips, Techniques and Tricks has been published. While past articles have focused on construction methods such as how to make wooden circles or how to make a wooden head, this one takes a look at the power rotary tool, or "Dremel" as we often call it. I offer a number of tips ranging from safety to how to work with materials such as wood, metal, and glass. I also share tricks on getting the most from common accessories. There is a link to a chart that specifies which rotary tool bits work best at which speeds. There is also a link to an interactive bit-finder which helps you select the best tool for the job. I hope you enjoy the article!

Here is a link to Dug North's article on 21 rotary tool tips and tricks for makers of all sorts. Here is where you can find previous installments of Dug's Automata Tips, Techniques and Tricks.


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Monday, December 19, 2011

Kinetic sculpture by Ben Trautman

Take a look at this amazing large-scale kinetic sculptures by Ben Trautman.

From the artist's web site:

My work combines the languages of industrial architecture and organic forms using intuitive engineering and experimentation. Inspired by cities, bones, mechanics and the movement of living organisms, I build sculptures suggesting creatures that inhabit the crevices of industrial decay. I work with dual languages, mass and delicacy or solidity and agility. Architecture inspires and hosts my work, provides context and scale, mass to inhabit or solidity to erode.

With a studio located in Oakland, California, he has made mechanical sculptures for The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia and The Bay Area Discovery Museum in Sausalito, California.

See more kinetic sculptures by Ben Trautman on his web site.


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Sunday, December 18, 2011

Moving picture of a man in a flying contraption

YouTube user GrigorevViktor posted this video of a moving picture depicting a man in a mechanical flying contraption -- something like one Leonardo Da Vinci might have designed. I love the floating motion of the man, the subtle shifts in his posture, and the use of moving background elements.


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Friday, December 16, 2011

Assembly animations of kinetic wall sculptures

Here is a fascinating video featuring the kinetic art of Brett Dickins. The video shows the parts being added to the sculptures one-by-one. When the sculpture is complete, it is set in motion. It gives you a real appreciation for the complexity, ingenuity, and dedication involved in making these wall-mounted kinetic sculptures. The chorus of the background track is quite apropos.

See more kinetic sculpture by Brett Dickins on his YouTube channel.


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Thursday, December 15, 2011

Mechanical gift idea #7 - Not Yet fish automaton

It's not often one has a chance to purchase a genuine automaton by Paul Spooner for 41.5 GBP or about $64 USD. It stands to reason then that it's not often one has the chance to give a gift of a Paul Spooner automaton! Do it.

A bit about this piece from Spooner himself:

Another piece that exploits the attractive/repulsive effects of neodymium magnets. The handle turns a cylinder in which a magnet is inserted radially so that its poles alternate, causing a magnet buried in the fish to feel attracted or repelled by turns. The foil, which is pure tin and beautiful stuff in its own right, stops the fish from becoming airborne.

Clever, beautifully made, and from the workshop of a modern master. You can order Paul Spooner's limited edition automaton Not Yet from the Cabaret Mechanical Theatre web site.


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Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Mechanical gift idea #6 - Paper Models That Move

Paper Models That Move: 14 Ingenious Automata, and More

As I have said many times, paper automata are a great way -- perhaps even the best way -- to get started with automaton-making. The 14 automata projects in this book are all made from cardstock!

The book contains 24 pages of theory and 14 construction kits in all. Eight of the construction kits teach fundamental mechanical principles in a hands-on, kinetic way. The other six kits are working paper automata. The illustrated instructions and cut-and-assemble components make these ingenious paper sculptures easy to put together.

The book covers the following topics and projects:
1. Crank Slider
2. Oscillating Lever
3. Friction Transfer
4. Meshing Gearwheels
5. Ratchet
6. Cams & Friction wheel
7. Cam & Pushrod
8. Cam & Lever
9. Happy Birthday automaton
10. At the Duck's Pond automaton
11. Pyramid Lifter automaton
12. The Weight of Bureaucracy automaton
13. Pianist automaton
14. Gymnast automaton

The reader will learn the fundamentals of mechanisms and get some great working pieces too! That's not bad for the price of a book, a few common household tools, and a bit of time.

Here is where you can order Paper Models That Move: 14 Ingenious Automata, and More.


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Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Automata exhibition at San Francisco airport

Automata exhibition at San Francisco airport

The video shown below accompanies an new exhibition of antique automata that opened at the International Terminal of San Francisco International Airport (SFO) in November of 2011. Most of the nineteen automata on display were loaned from the Murtogh D. Guinness Collection at the Morris Museum located in Morristown, New Jersey.

From the SFO Museum web site:

This exhibition of automata and mechanical tableaux offers a broad range of automaton production from the second half of the nineteenth century, and includes a late twentieth-century creation using nineteenth-century parts and production methods. Most are set in motion by a mechanical spring motor and possess a music box. The best makers of the era are represented: Lambert, Phalibois, Tharin, Renou, Roullet & Decamps, and Vichy.

The exhibit is situated right where travelers get on and off the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system and is open to ALL visitors, ticketed or non-ticketed. If you are in the San Francisco area, you'll want to go check this out!

Here is a link to more information on the automata exhibit at SFO from the SFO Museum web site.


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Monday, December 12, 2011

Automata in the trailer for The Woman in Black

With the success of HUGO, automata have gotten a huge amount of exposure in recent weeks. But, as of February of 2012, HUGO won't be the only film showing automata! Check out this creepy trailer for The Woman in Black starring Daniel Radcliffe of Harry Potter fame. Like several of the automata seen in HUGO, the automata in the preview are also from the collections of our friends at The House of Automata who served as consultants for HUGO.


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Saturday, December 10, 2011

Laetitia, Princess of the air by Pierre Mayer

I've been featuring the work of automaton-maker and magician Pierre Mayer on my blog for a while now. His is the creator of many wonderful magic-trick automata including The Orange Tree, Miniature Orange Tree, The Harlequin, Fechner's Levitation on Stool, a tribute to Siegfried and Roy, and many others.

Here is new and mysterious automaton by Pierre Mayer called "Laetitia".

From the artist's web site:

This automaton differs from the previous one: the Fechner’s levitation. It uses a completely different principle, no magnets this time. Laetitia floats in the air when you turn the handle and the arms raise. A mirror at her back shows there is nothing to hide and creates a perfect illusion for this levitation. Also the flames from the candles twirl and move up.

See more magic automaton by Pierre Mayer on his web site.


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Friday, December 09, 2011

Inside the vintage mechanical bartender toy

You've probably seen them: the bartender toy that shakes a drink, pours it, lifts it as if drinkings, smack his lips, turn red, then blows smoke out of his ears. I have one that I plan to fix. My question is this: how is that smoke produced? The end of the video shows the mechanism with wires leading into it. This suggests that heat from the wires burns a little something. But these toys have been around since the 60s and many still work. Nobody seems to recall adding anything to make the smoke work, so it has been there since the toy was made. What on earth could last so long? Is it oil or wax perhaps? I'd like to know! Here is what the assembled toy looks like:


[ Thanks Aaron! ]


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Thursday, December 08, 2011

Wooden mechanical flapping bird mobiles

It's all too brief, but check out the lovely motion of this wooden mechanical bird. The bird is set in motion by pulling a string below (not shown). The YouTube description says it was made by Hans Happ (1899-1992), a German painter and creator of mechanical art toys.

Here is a beautifully made flying bird mobile made by Kenji Hayami. The sculpture depicts a white crane with a red crest in flight. The piece uses nice woods, an adjustable counter-balance system, and clever magnetic hinges. I wish I could see it in motion. I bet it is beautiful.

Flapping bird mobile

Here is the page with more info on the white crane wooden bird mobile.


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Wednesday, December 07, 2011

Passing of a master watchmaker, George Daniels

I had heard of watchmaker George Daniels, mostly because I have been eyeing a certain book on Amazon for several months. The description and artwork in his book Watchmaking caught my attention right away. I did not know until recently how accomplished the author was as a watchmaker. Sadly, this genius passed away on October 21st at the age of 85. The facts within an obituary published by The Economist have left me stunned.

Daniels not only taught himself horology, but also every skill needed to produce a watch entirely on his own. He made the screws, springs, gears, hands and dials. He also made many of the tools used to make these things! In his 42 years of work, he created 37 unique watches and invented his own escapements. Here is video of his revolutionary co-axial escapement.


His obsession with precision led to the development of incredibly -- and entirely mechanical -- new watch mechanisms. This was no ordinary man, but rather the greatest watchmaker of our time.

Here is a link to the obituary for George Daniels published by The Economist.

[ Thanks Pete! ]


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Tuesday, December 06, 2011

Mechanical gift idea #5 - Making Things Move book

Making Things Move by Dustyn Roberts

If you have a maker or aspiring maker in your life and they don't own this book, this should be your holiday gift to them. You won't just be giving them a book, but a fundamental education in machines and fabrication techniques that they will be able to use for the rest of their life. No, that's not an exaggeration.

In Making Things Move, Dustyn Roberts explains mechanical design principles and their applications in non-technical terms, using examples and a dozen topic-focused projects.

Some of the topics covered:

  • Introductions to mechanisms and machines
  • Finding and using materials such as metals, plastics, & wood
  • Basic physics
  • How to fasten and attach things in a bunch of different ways
  • Info on different types of motors and how to use them
  • Converting between rotary and linear motion
  • Using off-the-shelf components
  • A wide variety of fabrication techniques
  • How to have things made, if you can't do it yourself
  • A primer on Arduino micro-controllers
  • There is even a section on automata!

This is an outstanding book with a ton of great information presented in a very accessible way. I believe it to be a classic-in-its-own time for makers. I wish I had owned it years ago!

Here is where you can order the book Making Things Move DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists, and Artists.


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Monday, December 05, 2011

Creating the drawing automata for the movie Hugo

Dick George Creatives provide creative manufacturing solutions for the film, television and the entertainment Industry. They were recently tasked with creating the automaton for Martin Scorsese film Hugo. They were not to build a mere prop; the automaton had to be able actually draw the famous man-in-the-moon image from early film by Georges Méliès. They ended up making a total of 15 automata, two of which could draw the image in real time without the use of CGI. They succeed in the task, using a very different solution than Maillardet's drawing automaton -- the automaton that inspired author Brian Selznick.

See more models, prototypes, film and television sets at the Dick George Creatives web site.


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Flying, exercising, and dancing Santa automata

Christmas: The Pre-Reindeer EraChristmas: The Pre-Reindeer Era

Over the years, I have made two automata featuring Santa Claus. Why? Well, he's a great royalty-free character and one that seems tolerant to being modified. The first one I made (shown above) is titled Christmas: The Pre-reindeer Era. It depicts Santa in those early years before he could make the down-payment on that expensive sleigh with all those reindeer.

The second one I made was for a holiday issue of a woodworking magazine. Yup, you can get plans to build this Exercising Santa. The automaton depicts Santa building his upper body strength in preparation for the big night. This one is called Training for Christmas:

Exercising Santa automaton by Dug NorthTraining for Christmas

Here's a new addition to the genre, but I didn't design this one. The Dancing Santa was created by Shawn Cipa -- an award-winning Santa Carver. He made this neat Santa automaton for this year's holiday edition of Woodcarving Illustrated magazine.

Here is a link to Woodcarving Illustrated's Santa Automaton page.


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Sunday, December 04, 2011

Flying Love 2011 automaton by Carlos Zapata

Check out this delightful automaton -- one of several new pieces by Carlos Zapata -- entitled Flying Love 2011. The carved characters and the winged heart make for a charming automaton.

You can see more new automata by Carlos Zapata on his blog.


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Friday, December 02, 2011

Props from the movie Hugo online and in person

Props form the movie Hugo online and in person

The Hollywood Movie Costumes and Props blog has a great post featuring a number of photographs from an exhibit of items used in the movie HUGO. Among the items shown are the outfits the actors wore and one of the automata created for the film (shown above).

You can also see some of the props from the movie in person! If you can make it to Scotland, there is a HUGO exhibition now open at The House of Automata, where you can see props used in the film and gain insight into the making of the film from people involved. A very rare opportunity!


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Thursday, December 01, 2011

Mechanical gift idea #4 - Time Machine clock

The Time Machine table top rolling marble clock

Part clock, part sculpture, The Time Machine is a mechanical clock that moves a set of chrome balls every sixty seconds. There is a track of accumulated balls to indicate the hour of the day and another two to indicate the minutes. There is a even a second hand on top. The clock has been around longer than you might think and was sold as "The Electric Wonder Ball Clock". Here is a nice video review of the clock


It comes with a fitted acrylic display case that keeps the dust out of the mechanism and makes it look really sleek and futuristic. This modern version of an ancient method of keeping time is a great conversation piece, fun for kids and adults. Please note: because of the clacking of the chrome balls this isn't a clock you'll want to put in a library -- but that's true of most mechanical clocks!

Here's the link for more info on the Time Machine Tabletop Clock


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