Massive robot dragon fights a giant spider in Beijing's Olympic Park

Check out this performance of puppetry on a grand scale. The giant robots perform a show loosely based on Chinese mythology. The puppets were created by the French company, La Machine.

Learn more about the Robot dragon and giant spider on the BBC News web site.

[ Thanks Bill! ]

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The Aetherologist - interactive automaton from a past that never was

Check out this amazing project by Brett King inspired in part by the works of Henri Maillardet and Thomas Kuntz. It's an automaton and an interactive performance all in one. The multimedia piece has a well-developed back-story which makes for a rich and intriguing experience for the viewer.

The artist explains:

The Aetherologist is an interactive steampunk exhibit that demonstrates the power of the aether as a communications medium. It includes an automaton which gathers information about the time and temperature around the world and an Aetherscope for direct viewing of events around the world. The idea behind the video is that the Aetherologist might have been exhibited at something like the Chicago World's Fair in 1934. I imagined "the aether" being the way that internet was developed in an alternate reality.

Using both found and constructed elements, the automaton took just over 4 months to build. The found objects incorporated into the piece include a working bakelite radio, microphone, magnifying glass, brass mask, and prism.

King intends to create a carrying case so that he can take The Aetheriologist to various Steampunk and maker conventions, such as ConTemporal.

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Video of 'The Headless Clown' magic automaton by Pierre Mayer

I posted a few days ago about the amazing new automaton by Pierre Mayer. He is known for creating automata that perform a magic trick. This particular piece is a tip of the hat to the famous French maker Phalibois and his headless clown automaton.

As you will see in this new video, the scene starts with clown a holding a fan. The clown slowly raises the fan in front of his face. There is a pause and when the fan is pulled away, the clown's head has disappeared! The top of one of the boxes next to the figure starts to rise, and the clown's head mysteriously emerges from within! The entire sequence then reverses, ending with the clown's head restored to its proper place.

See more magical automata on Pierre Mayer's web site.

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The Electric Animal Circus: it's robots in a circus...what's not to like?

Any of my attempts to explain The Electric Animal Circus will fall short. As the title of the post implies, it involves a circus, robots, and a dose of humor.

Beyond watching the film above, their website says this:

Pozzo and Grotsky's Electric Animal Circus is a new type of live show: robot animals performing circus-inspired acts in a post-apocalyptic variety show. This website exists to showcase the project as it develops from concept to stage.

If you enjoyed the introductory film, here is one featuring The Great Maestro Pickleton and His Unusual Musical Octopus:

And while the film feels like something that might be a Kickstarter project, the web site says that the project is Financed by Deutsche Bank. I may be missing a joke here, but that's what it says.

[ Thanks Joe! ]

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Sewing Machines Orchestra by Martin Messier

Check out this creative use for a gang of those robust old sewing machines.

Sewing Machine Orchestra is entirely orchestrated with the acoustic noises produced by 1940's sewing machines amplified by means of microcontacts and process by computer, tackles the listener imagination primarily through the evocative power of those old industrial marvels. Whether they remind of specific incidents or recall the relationship to such objects, few people remain indifferent when they see them.

You can learn more about the project on Martin Messier's web site.

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Video profile of marionette maker Geahk Burchill

Here's a lovely video profile of marionette maker Geahk Burchill of The CastIron Carousel Marionette Troupe in Portland, Oregon. The video gives many fascinating glimpses into the process of making lifelike moving figures.

From the The CastIron Carousel web site:

The CastIron Carousel is a small, Portland local marionette troupe which does shows for grown-up audiences. Our themes include: Victorian era Science Fiction, 1920’s horror, prison, gangsters, Fairy tales and monster stories. We are inspired by Tom Waits, William Dwiggins, H.P. Lovecraft, H.G. Wells, Jack tales and Jules Verne. We work with Marionettes, Shadow puppets, Rod puppets and a smattering of other things. We do small beautifully strange plays with gorgeous sets and splendid puppets.

Learn more about The CastIron Carousel on their web site.

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Book: The Complete Book of Marionettes

Recently, I decided to start reading up on marionette construction techniques. After years of thinking about it, I finally bought the book Making and Manipulating Marionettes. I would certainly recommend it! It's a beautiful book with many detailed construction techniques.

I do not have the book shown here, but it gets a few good reviews, seems very comprehensive, and those Dover books on art instruction are almost always a great value.

From the book description:

Absorbing, entertaining guide provides all the information needed to construct puppets and puppet theaters, including valuable advice on making heads, bodies, wigs, and puppet clothing, manipulating the puppet, setting up and furnishing a stage, lighting scenes, and building miniature pieces of furniture. Complete script for Beauty and the Beast. Over 200 illustrations.

Here is where you can check out The Complete Book of Marionettes.

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Hands-free bird puppets by Axtell Expressions

Check out this amazing "hands-free" remote-controlled puppet. A very small remote control is used to open and close the bird's mouth. Another button turns the puppet's head to face the audience or the ventriloquist. It even has a sort of "cruise control" mode in which the bird moves about in a subtle but lifelike manner, allowing the puppeteer to focus on other things or to work with multiple puppets at the same time.

Here is a link where you can learn more and see a full show featuring the Axtell Expressions hands-free bird puppet.

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Big Man Walking, Scotland's first giant puppet

Check out this video of an impressive 8 meter tall blue giant of a puppet known as Big Man.

See more photos and additional videos at the Big Man Walking web site.

[ Thanks Bill! ]

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