‘The Flooded Arena’, an incredible clockwork automaton somewhere in London

If you are in London, and brave as well as determined, you should find your way to this exhibition and show. It's an installation based on Mark Ferelli's automaton, The Flooded Arena. He has worked on this for a decade and it has many impressive movements as the gladiator circles the flailing serpent. The exhibit is in Deptford in London. I am informed that many would consider it to be on the "wrong" side of the river, but that it is simply incredible.

From an article on the exhibit:

Surrounded by numerous working drawings, illustrating the ways and mysteries of its creation, Ferelli presents 'The Flooded Arena', a clockwork automaton, owing as much in character to those past mechanical creations of antiquity from Hero of Alexandria, Salomon de Caus, the genius of Arabia’s own 'Golden Age', Al-Jazari, as it does the fantastic cinema of Korda’s 'Thief of Baghdad' and the 'Sinbad' movies of Ray Harryhausen.

Mythology, music, darkness, clockwork powered and lit by magic lantern. Sounds pretty good to me! If you have more details on how exactly how to find this exhibit, leave a comment or send me a note. It appears to be at the offices of DIVUS, which according the article below are located at Enclave 5, 50 Resolution Way London.

Here is an article about the exhibit.

[ Thanks Michael! ]

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Fantastic musical automaton clock of an elephant worth £1.4 million

Check out this ormolu musical automaton clock by Peter Torckler. The piece was part of an auction held at Sotheby's in July of 2012. This beautiful machine is dated to around 1780 and was intended for a market in China with whom London had developed an impressive trade relationship. The piece was estimated to be worth £1,000,000 to £2,000,000 prior to the auction and found a buyer right in the middle of the range at £1.4 million.

A bejeweled whirligig spins above the animal. Below that, a figure of the Greek god Atlas, holds up a rotating sphere of the heavens. The elephant figure sits on a rockwork base inset with the clock dial. The automaton depicts an Asian elephant whose trunk, eyes, ears, and tail all move in appropriate ways. Below that, a small animated scene depicts falling water, tiny windmills, and spinning waterwheels. The musical movement, which will play a choice of six tunes, is hidden within the lower section.

[ Thanks Thomas! ]

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Douglas Fisher now offering Golden Age automata, singing birds, and musical boxes

The firm of Douglas Fisher of London has launched a new web site which offers Golden Age automata, fine singing bird boxes and cages, and unusual cylinder musical boxes.

The list of offerings features many examples from the most renowned makers: Vichy, Roullet-Decamps, Griesbaum, Bontems, Phallibois, and others. Every piece they offer is shown in static images, video with sound, and in a 360-degree view. According to their web site, the majority of thier pieces can be viewed at their gallery at 75 Portobello Road in London. They will also be exhibiting at various fairs in Europe, USA and Asia.

Here is the web site for Douglas Fisher Antique Automata Ltd.

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Cabaret Mechanical Theatre's Winter Automata Fair with expert Michael Start

As you may know Cabaret Mechanical Theatre has an exhibit of automata at Space Station Sixty-Five until January 6th, 2013.

Cabaret Mechanical Theatre has recently announced that they will be having a Winter Automata Fair at Space Station Sixty-Five on November 28th from 5PM to 8PM. An evening for collectors, enthusiasts and the curious, this will be a unique chance to buy archive prints, posters, automata and kits as well as a several push-button exhibits. The complete sales list will be available on the day of the fair.

The Winter Automata fair will also feature automaton expert Michael Start from The House of Automata. Michael served as Automaton & Horological Advisor for Martin Scorsese's award winning film Hugo which features a clockwork automaton based on the famous Maillardet drawing automaton. Michael will talk about his experience working on the film and share some of his work.

What
Cabaret Mechanical Theatre Winter Automata Fair

When
November 28th, 2012 from 5PM to 8PM

Where
Space Station Sixty-Five
65 North Cross Road
London
SE22 9ET

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Bird Song with a Found Feather by Martin Smith with Laikingland

How would you like to wake up in the morning at just the right time to the sound of a beautiful birdsong? That was the idea behind Bird Song with a Found Feather by artist Martin Smith -- to create a mechanically-operated slide whistle that can be set and activated to go off at a specific time.

The piece as described by Martin Smith:

I wanted a piece that could be set, as with an alarm clock, and would allow you start the day gently. I am interested in producing mechanical bird sounds and seeing the cause and effect through a mechanism. For me the making is very important and I wanted to craft every part of the machine, to understand how the bellows are constructed and operate and to get the bird whistle sounding just right.

The piece is made of steel, brass, fabric, custom electrics a feather, and is powered by a 12v motor. It is a beautifully crafted machine with big brass cams. The feather (shown at right) is attached to a long wire coming from the top of the bellows.

Laikingland will be exhibiting this and other new pieces by Maarten Baas and Martin Smith at Mint as part of the London Design Festival 2012.

What:
Mint presents A Spatial Surprise

When:
September 14th to September 30th, 2012

Where:
Mint
2 North Terrace
Alexander Square
London SW3 2BA

For information on price and availability you may contact the Laikingland team at enquiries@laikingland.co.uk

[ Thanks Mike! ]

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Cabaret Mechancial Theatre adds second show in London for 2012

CMT at Space Station Sixty-Five - Part 2

Cabaret Mechanical Theatre's recent summer exhibit in London was a great success, with over 10,000 people visiting the exhibition at Space Station Sixty-Five. They have just announced that there will be a second free exhibition in the same place.

Sausage Drawer by Paul Spooner

If you missed the first show, check out the video above, but more importantly, visit the upcoming show to a new selection of automata. As with the last show, there will be a shop to accompany the exhibit selling books, cutouts, kits, and automata. Until then, here are some links to books, cutouts, kits to tied you over.

Shown here is a photograph of Paul Spooner's classic automaton titled Sausage Drawer.

Details for the fall CMT exhibit

What:
CMT at Space Station Sixty-Five - Part 2

Where:
Space Station Sixty-Five
65 North Cross Road
London, SE22 9ET

When:
September, 2012 to January 2012
Thursday to Sundays 11 AM to 6 PM
Closed Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays

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Video of the 2012 Cabaret Mechanical Theatre automata exhibit in London

Here is a lovely video showing the current Cabaret Mechanical Theatre exhibit in London. A previous post featured artist and engineer, Tim Hunkin, performing a very unusual "ribbon cutting" ceremony at the exhibit opening. Let's just say it involved a pad lock and angle grinder.

Though the exhibit has only been open a short time, the video starts with a celebration of the exhibit's 5,000 visitor. It just goes to show you how much people love contemporary automata. To a huge extent, we have Cabaret Mechanical Theatre to thank for that.

The video also shows an assortment of automata made from paper, metal, and wood. You will see pieces by many of the artists you might expect from CMT including Peter Markey, Keith Newstead, Paul Spooner, Pierre Mayer, Walter Ruffler, John Lumbus, and others.

The exhibit will be open Tuesday through Sunday until the September 7th, 2012 and is located at:
65 North Cross Road
East Dulwich SE22 9ET

Congratulations to Cabaret Mechanical Theatre on their recent exhibit and ongoing success!

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Cabaret Mechanical Theatre's new exhibition and shop are open in London!

Here's a charming video featuring some very good news. Cabaret Mechanical Theatre has a new exhibition and shop in London! There are 30 exhibits, and a small shop selling discounted books and DVDs, as well as a small selection of automata which is only available from the store.

The new exhibit and shop is located here:
65 North Cross Road
East Dulwich SE22 9ET

The exhibit will be open Tuesday through Sunday until the September 7th, 2012.

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