We’re delving into the archives to take a closer look at some of Paul Spooner’s automata. This piece is from 2010. This machine is reminiscent of one of Paul’s very first machines (1969) which was an art criticism machine that he made while at art school. It is A Machine for Computing the Names of […]
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Novelty Automation
The new London arcade of home-made coin operated machines built by enthusiasts – opens February 11th 2015 (twinned with ‘The Under The Pier Show‘ seaside arcade in Southwold, Suffolk) Tim Hunkin’s new arcade of slot machines, including some old favourites from CMT’s Covent Garden days -The Frisker, Test Your Nerve and The Chiropodist. Novelty Automation […]
Mechanicals at Wilton’s Music Hall
Our Mechanicals exhibition will be at Wiltons Music Hall from 12th to 17th February, as part of a series of making events with Fire the Inventor, for adults and children. 12th – 13th February Making Nights, with wine and music. 14th February, Exhibition and Family Workshop 16th February and 17th February Half Term fun and […]
New Valentine’s Automata
We have two one-off pieces from US artist Aaron Kramer for Valentines. Aaron writes: As a child, I fell in love with contraptions, coin-operated amusements and marionettes. The clack and clatter of machinery plus the visual ‘eye candy’ of mechanisms all gave me a thrill. I have always wanted to make things that moved or […]
Working with Brass, Part 3 – Soldering Brass – Dug’s Tips 15
In previous installments of this column, we looked at some methods for cutting brass and techniques for bending brass for your automaton projects. At some point, you will want to join some of these pieces without the use of screws, bolts, or other hardware. In this, the final installment of our series on working with […]
The Nutcracker: Christmas at Mottisfont
Some of our automata are appearing at Mottisfont, National Trust, as part of their Nutcracker Christmas event. Saturday 29 November – Sunday 4 January 2015 Start your visit with a peek into a twinkling Christmas party, then ascend the staircase to the sound of ticking clocks, to enter the dream mechanical world of the Nutcracker. […]
The Turk by Pierre Mayer
The latest piece from Pierre Mayer is based on the famous life-size automaton, The Chess Player Turk. “It was a project that was in the back of my mind many years ago. I consulted my late friend Christian Fechner who advised me to use moving gears inside the cabinet. Then I asked the legendary John […]
Working with Brass, Part 2 – Bending Brass – Dug’s Tips 14
In the last instalment of this column, we looked at some of the many ways you can cut brass for your automaton project. Once cut, there is a good chance you will need to bend the brass in some way to suit your needs. Let’s take a look at some of the methods for bending […]
The Science of Conversation
We’re delving into the archives to take a closer look at some of Paul Spooner’s automata. This piece is from 2010. “Although it’s tempting to think of ways in which I might have been foreseeing the current double-headed political situation in Britain, I actually thought of this machine while talking to my dad. I realised […]
Finding the Value
In 2011 Peter Madsen left his estate to York Museum’s Trust. Amongst is bequest was his art collection. Finding the Value is an exhibition in which commissioned artists respond to items from the collection and open up questions of the inheritance of cultural values. Artist Simon Venus has created a mechanical tableaux for the exhibition. […]
