We have two very tiny magic automata which make great last minute gifts. The Sawing a Lady in half is a classic trick, the lady gets sawn in half before your very eyes (strong glasses may be required in some cases) or The Conjurer will pull a rabbit out of a hat. Operated by tiny […]
Archives for 2009
Day 35 – The Temptation of St Anthony (after Salvador Dali)
This evening we bring you another magnificent large automaton. Tonight’s is from Keith Newstead, who has just finished this version of the Temptation of Saint Anthony, and was inspired by Dali’s painting of the supernatural scene, (below). In Keith’s new version, Saint Anthony is found in a modern day desert setting, complete with crumbling devilish […]
Day 34 – Tipu's Tiger
Tonight we bring you a really magnificent new piece from Carlos Zapata, inspired by the well known 18th century automaton at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. (see below) An unfortunate employee of the British East India Company is being savaged by a vicious tiger. Above him his fellow soldiers are on a campaign […]
Day 33 – The Search
Paul Spooner has stayed up late again… and made four of these intriguing pieces. Unusually the mechanism is not viewable, so guesswork is required. Action. On turning the handle, the snorkeller undertakes an urgent and thorough search into all four corners of his patch of sea. Caption on label “A lone snorkeller quarters a turquoise […]
Day 32 – The Wiggling Figure
We have one only of these beautiful pieces – the perfect last minute gift, (maybe for yourself!) This androgynous piece was originally a one-off by Paul Spooner which graced the entrance of the Cabaret Mechanical Theatre in Covent Garden, splendid in it’s glass dome. The movement is derived from the rotating pelvis, (which is where […]