Art
Dreamlike Projections Hidden in an Alleyway
Artists will bring shadow puppetry, magic lantern animations, peepshows, and more to LA's Chinatown for Dissolving Sights II, the opening of Peephole Cinema.
Automata
Art
Five Centuries of Robotic Machines Reflect Human and Technological Change
Five centuries of robots, from clockwork monks to mechanical actors, are explored in a major exhibition at London's Science Museum.
Art
A One-of-a-Kind Room Fragrancer from Medieval Europe Finally Gets Its Due
The Cleveland Museum of Art's ornate table fountain, a 14th-century hydraulic automata, is the focus of a new exhibition on the popular medieval decorative objects.
News
A Lost 1920s Robot Is Reconstructed in London
The UK's first robot, Eric, disappeared after his debut, but the Science Museum has created a working replica.
Art
Crank That! A Dutch Museum Devoted to Musical Clocks and Self-Playing Instruments
UTRECHT, The Netherlands — Right off the city’s main commercial thoroughfare, where bicycles zoom past with a clinking sound, is one of the Netherlands’ most surprising treasures, the Museum Speelklok (or Museum of Musical Clocks).
Art
The Incredible Electric Eric: Rebuilding a Lost 1920s British Robot
By all accounts, the debut of the UK's first humanoid robot was a startling affair.
News
A 19th-Century Birdcage Automaton Comes to Life, and Auction
Shimmery, singing birds flit from perch to perch and a butterfly flaps its hand-painted, iridescent wings above an animated fountain on a three-tune musical automaton birdcage clock by Bautte & Moynier.
Books
The 9th-Century Islamic "Instrument Which Plays by Itself"
In the 9th century, the Banū Mūsā brothers in Baghdad designed a mechanical, hydraulic organ that was made to play endlessly by itself.
Art
After a Visit to the Vet, a Kaleidophonic Dog Clangs, Bangs, and Whistles Again
If you're roaming the Los Angeles County Museum of Art's modern art galleries, a cacophony of whistles, bells, thuds, and clashes may interrupt your serene stroll.
Performance
Lesbian Noir with Hard-Boiled Wooden Puppets
LOS ANGELES — Last week, Automata mounted Concrete Folk Variations, a noir puppet play set in McCarthy-era Los Angeles that was written, directed, and designed by artist Susan Simpson.