Welcome to: The Robotorium: 2 New Additions

Thursday, December 27, 2018

2 New Additions

The last few weeks have been satisfyingly productive. I finished 2 robots that were partially complete. On the first one I was having issues with finishing the head. When I decided to give up what I had been planning the whole thing came together quickly. Hooray for being smart enough to know when to let go of an idea! Here is the finished product.

The second one I really like. The body is an old mechanical relay from the U.S. Navy. The head is from a projector bulb I pulled out of the trash at work. The arms are old dental drills. This one really works and is a little different than most of my others.

A resolution I am going to try and stick to is carving out more time in the Robotrium. Like any creative endeavor, the more you do it, the more you want to do it. Plus its always very rewarding. For now I am looking forward to the show I got into that begins in January. I decided to list both robots for sale, which is a big step given how attached I become to them, but its time to see if there is real interest, and a show in the South End is a great place to do that.

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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.