My inspirations have come from a variety of sources and pioneers that have shaped me over time to be inspired to do what I do now and includes well know pioneers and lesser known individuals that I'd like to share with you for your own inspirations and awareness.
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Theo Jansen
Kinetic sculpture artist
The first of my inspiring pioneers is Theo Jansen, a Dutch artist well known for his giant kinetic walking sculptures known as Strandbeest (beach beast).
These fascinating creatures, made from PVC are built to roam beaches powered by the wind harnessed by giant waving sails and stored in recycled bottles. The compressed air is used to power pistons, along with a variety of mechanical-actuated sensors that allow the beasts to roam beaches and sense the water's edge to change direction. I have been fortunate to see some of these creatures roam about in a demonstration when I visted Paris for the sole purpose of visiting a robotics exhibition at the Paris Science Musuem. The sheer size, scale and complexity of these beasts are awe inspiring when seen first hand and have served to inspire me to work at a larger scale for a greater sense of presence and authority in action. |