Welcome to: The Robotorium: October 2018

Tuesday, October 16, 2018

Friends Give You Parts - Again

Lisa, one of my co-workers and all around creative and cool person, gave me some parts a few weeks ago. Just 2 old valves from the steam radiators from her house. I loved the way they looked so I jumped right in and things came together quickly.

This is what she gave me:

And this what I gave back to her today:

I've decided that going forward, if I get usable parts from a friend, my goal will be to give them a robot from those parts in return. I did this once before for my buddy Amina. One of the challenges I have with these things is that when I make one, I want to keep it. Hopefully this will be a way for me to curb that inclination and get more work out there. I love the reaction I get from my work and today made a friend smile, what could be better than that?

Friday, October 5, 2018

No Robots, but much Coolness!

So last month I got a rare, and historically super geeky opportunity. I was on the U.S.S. Constitution when it did a turn around cruise in Boston Harbor. How incredibly cool is it to be on the worlds oldest commissioned warship, a ship that was named by George Washington? Well I thought it was awesome. The cruise was to honor Gold Star Families and educators (that's how I got on board). They ship went out to Castle Island, was saluted by a National Guard Battery, returned the salute, and then went back to her birth. All told it was a 3 hour cruise and just tremendous. We lucked out weather wise too, it was perfect.

Artists Statement

Robots, the future was supposed to be full of them. I grew up in the shadow of the Apollo program, transfixed as massive machines left Pad 39A, rising on a pillar of fire. I drank up every episode of The Thunderbirds, Star Trek, Creature Double Feature and Dr. Who. I devoured Asimov, Clark and Heinlein. They showed me a future of great adventure and promise, all accompanied by a faithful metal companion; not a Roomba or a self-driving car. While cool, they lack the reassuring yet potentially sinister metal gleam of Robby, or B9 from Lost in Space. They do not lurch from task to task or generate massive electrical arcs. They are not imbued with superhuman strength, and are missing the frightening single-mindedness of Gort or The Terminator.

I have always loved building things. So, given the robotless state of my present, I grabbed a screwdriver and drill and took remnants from the past to make my missing future. I see potential creations in stuff that gets thrown away. I love the machine age look of polished aluminum, wrinkle finished paint, and Bakelite. I look for parts that complement each other. Using cast-offs from a time before transistors, I try to create something with an aesthetic unity. I want my robots to look like they have been used and worked, while broadcasting a personality and sense of presence. I want them to look real, that’s important. Most of all, when I’m done, I want to look at them and laugh. With each creation I get a little closer to the dreams I had as a boy, a little closer to the future I imagined. Step into The Robotorium and let me share with you the way it all could have been.