Mechanisms and Movement

Movement has always fascinated me: rocking chairs, wind mills, animated sculpture, clock gears, etc.. I remember taking apart an old watch when I was a kid and being 'moved' by the tiny shoe-tack–sized, paper-thin, shiny-gold discs with toothy edges that were strong enough to move other tiny toothy-edged discs to ultimately move the hands of the watch to precise measures of time. That was a mind-boggling moment for my kid-brain! As I get older, the excitement only grows. But never did I ever imagine that there could be so many different types of movement: linear, rotary, intermittent, reciprocating, oscillating, and irregular. Then all the different kinds of mechanisms that produce those movements: gears, levers, pulleys, cranks, rack and pinion, cams, etc.. And then compound mechanisms where different mechanisms fit together into systems. Nutty!

I don't pretend to understand it all but I remain mesmerized. For those of you who have the same interest, you might find the Mechanism and Movement section of the Flying Pig Company web site interesting.

By the way, I still have those watch components in an old box in my studio. They are so captivating that I could never throw them away.

Automata For The People

The Cabaret Mechanical Theatre has a wide range of automata from pre-built life-sized wooden models all the way down to palm-sized paper models that you assemble yourself. The price range is equally broad. You can buy their products, instructional/ documentary-style CD-ROMs and books online. And, many of the studio artists, Paul Spooner in particular, regularly exhibit their work for the masses to enjoy. At left, I've inserted one of their quirky animations, "Honeymoon Bed". It comes complete with bouncing sound! (June 2010 update: Sadly, this product doesn't seem to be available any more.)

Paper Engineering

Now here's a brilliant idea that marries design and engineering. The Flying Pig Paper Animation Kits company provides downloadable patterns (some are pre-cut, pop-out models that must be shipped) for making animated paper models that you assemble. Even the gear that drives the animation is made of folded paper!

Turn the handle on the "T.Rex" and he bites the caveman at his feet. Crank the "Ewe Boat" and a sheep rows the vessel. Rotate the gear in "Mexican Peck" and chickens feed. For a bushel of fun, purchase, download, print, cut and assemble -- within an evening you'll have delightful animated paper models to play with. The models are very reasonably-priced at about 3 pounds each. There are even a few free ones to test out.