German Musical Clown and Dog Act Automaton

Here is a German-made automaton currently available on eBay.

As you turn the hand-crank the music plays and the poodles climb over the top of the ladder. The clown moves his head back and forth and moves his arm back and forth with the wand. The seller says the piece features glass eyes, is from the 1880s, and is in good working order.

Here is the eBay listing with additional photographs of the Musical Clown and Dog Act Automaton

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Automaton Artist: Anthony Lent

The automaton in the video above is the work of master jeweler and automata-maker, Anthony Lent. This piece is entitled Vespa Inhorgenti.

From his site:
Mr. Lent has taught at New York's Fashion Institute of Technology for thirty-one years, serving as chairman of the Jewelry Department from 1990-2001. He has also pursued the fascinating world of automata, creating magical and intricately built pieces that delight and beguile the eye and the mind. His work, including intricately hand-crafted watches, has been shown in numerous venues in America and Europe. He has won international awards

Visit Anthony Lent's web site and automata page to see more of his gorgeous work.

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PhantasieMechanik Exhibition at phaeno

Head over to The Mechanical Blog to read their recent posting about an upcoming exhibition in Wolfsburg, Germany.

The show will include 40 pieces from Cabaret Mechanical Theatre and 18 from American artist Arthur Ganson. There will also be works by Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre, Eduard Bersudsky, and Norman Tuck.

Read all of the details about The PhantasieMechanik Exhibit.

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Featured Artist: Michael Pflueger

Michael Pflueger is a Germany-based mechanical sculptor, maker of interesting metal art, and designer of useful household items.

This is a clever interactive piece in which the viewer/user is pecked at by the mechanical bird. It is amazing that a few mechanical parts can create such a lifelike motion.

Check out some of his other works at michael-pflueger.com. [Thanks Falk!]

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Automata-Maker Ian McKay

The British automata artist Ian McKay combines weathered driftwood with wooden toy-like elements to create things like this boat automaton.

Trained as a ceramicist, he has also been a silversmith, a blacksmith, furniture designer, a maker of wood engraving blocks, drummer, technician, teacher, and gardener.

He sees toy-making to be the sum of all these experiences -- working in wood, brass rod, and paint.

See some Ian McKay automata at the www.craft2eu.net site

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Tin Automata by Andy Hazel

Automata maker, Andy Hazell works with recycled tin to create automata that are often inspired by the actions of daily living.

Working with sheet metal must employ some of the same techniques as working with paper, though I cannot speak from personal experience. The figures seem to take a similar form in both media.

I like how you can often see the mechanisms above the platforms on which the characters stand.

Here is a link to the craft2eu Gallery in Germany that shows and sells his work.

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Sand-Powered Automata

Sand powered automata go back hundreds of years, perhaps even more. Rather than turning a crank by hand, sand is loaded into a hopper placed high within the automaton. When released, the sand turns a wheel (very much like a water wheel seen on the side of mills), that then powers the mechanism.

I had the good fortune to see a absolutely delightful sand powered automata form the 1700s recently. (More on this later, so stay tuned.)

Walter Ruffler is one of my fellow automata makers on display at the Charles Museum of Industry in Waltham, Massachusetts. Mr. Ruffler is one a very few masters of the paper automata. He has some recent versions of sand powered automata his site.

Though he has an English version of his site, I could only find the sand powered automata within the German version. There are animated GIF images to show the motions of each automaton.

See the Sand-powered paper automata by Walter Ruffler.

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