Friday, August 28, 2009

Craig Kaufman - 1960s plastic art goodness


I watched the PBS documentary "the Cool School" a few months ago, and then picked it up again the other night.  My wife (http://blog.hippiecouture.com) and I are fascinated with the 60s, and the documentary shows some extra cool art as it emerged in LA during the 1950s and 60s at the Ferus Gallery.  I am particularly taken with the work by Craig Kaufman, as, if you know me at all, I have a deep fascination with shiny plastic.  Plastic is a motivating factor in the creation of my slobots, and Kaufman uses it in a masterful way.  The pieces I am highlighting here are from a series of work from the 60s that is created in vacuum formed acrylic plastic.  You can read some more about Kaufman on wikipedia...

The Ferus Gang (Group Portrait of Artists from the Ferus Gallery), 1962.
(Left to Right: John Altoon, Craig Kauffman, Allen Lynch, Ed Kienholz, Ed Moses, Robert Irwin, Billy Al Bengston). Photo by Patricia Faure.
 

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

slobot grunmicros over in the UK

UK toy blog vinylabuse.com did a quick write up on the grunmicros...

mike slobot robot art
The writer, OKKLE sent me a funny note telling me that the flatter headed grunmicro looks a little like these robots from the Smash Potatoes advert from the 60s... 




Monday, August 24, 2009

bassline makes the slobots insides jiggle

oddly enough, and not very widely known fact: most of the slobots prefer music with bass capable of rattling your insides. here's a couple of tracks, including the current (in the slobot's humble opinion) reigning king of trobbing bass - bassnectar.


and some other throbbing basslines from the bassbin twins...

if you subscribe by email, go straight to the slobots blog to see the videos :)

Thursday, August 20, 2009

slobot's Earl Grey and Sencha headed to Chicago

mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art These two slobots, Sencha and Earl Grey are headed over to Rotofugi in Chicago as we speak to be part of the Toy Karma 2 show... nice line-up on this one, including some heavyweights in the Kaiju and art / toy arena, like Buff Monster, David and Sun Min of Ugly Dolls fame, Itokin Park, and many, many more. The whole premise of this show is based around Japanese toys and their influence on art. This came at a great time for the slobots, as i have been following a track with some of the slobots that takes them back to some of the original images and shapes, which, interestingly enough, take some cues from Japanese Kokeshi dolls, like the Philosophers that i did for a show earlier this year. mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot artBoth of these slobots are made of found objects, approximately 75%-85% post consumer plastics that have been repurposed into art. The big one stands approximately 14" tall, both have a cool green glass eye and some glow in the dark parts. mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot artthey have a story too: "Earl Grey and Sencha are two slobots from two different worlds... Sencha comes from the far off land of Japan, created as a household service robot while Earl Grey was created to be a librarian by a noted scientist from Great Britain. Worlds away from their homelands, they met in New York City, and, sharing a passion for proper cups of tea, opened a wonderful little tea shop in the Lower east Side." mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art mike slobot toy karma 2 chicago rotofugi robot art

Slobot ROBOT x robolucha making his European Robotic Debut

mike slobot robolucha patch together custom robot art mekazoo This is the Slobot Sentry v5. Don't worry, despite his slightly menacing appearance, he's just a protector and a puppy dog at heart. He'll be making his debut at Milk Gallery in Istanbul, Turkey on September 15, 2009. He then travels around with the rest of the show throughout Europe to Toy2art in Cologne October 10-24, 2009, ThunderEgg in the UK, the Dirty Cream in France, and Think Pink Celle in Germany Nov 13-28th, 2009. Slobot Sentry v5 is a one of a kind custom based on the Robolucha figure series from Patch Together. he sports a snazzy silver paint scheme, a glow in the dark chest plate and wire fittings, a cool green glass eye, and moveable arms. here's a facebook page for the show, if you need more info: Facebook Robolucha Show mike slobot robolucha patch together custom robot art mekazoo mike slobot robolucha patch together custom robot art mekazoo mike slobot robolucha patch together custom robot art mekazoo these are some shots of the customized slobot next to one of the original figures. mike slobot robolucha patch together custom robot art mekazoo mike slobot robolucha patch together custom robot art mekazoo

Sunday, August 16, 2009

new slobots for sale in the etsy shop!

mike slobot friendly robot art GRUNMICROannouncing the GRUNMICROS... "The GRUNMICRO series of Slobots were created in the late 1960's as a German to English translation robot. The only problem is, they tend to be a bit mischievous, frequently giving intentionally improper translations, and spending in ordinate amounts of time updating their Facebook accounts with weird inside jokes. Nonetheless, they are seeking new friends..." Slobot GRUNMICROs are each one of a kind, custom 3" Toy2r Qee figures with found objects and other re-purposed bits used in their creation. They are a lovely green color with neon yellow wires and glow in the dark wire connections. This figure is suitable for a desk, a shelf, or a ride in the car, BUT IS NOT CRAFTED FOR KIDS or PETS :) He has small pieces that are probably a choking hazard! buy GRUNMICRO-09a or GRUNMICRO-09b mike slobot friendly robot art GRUNMICRO mike slobot friendly robot art GRUNMICRO mike slobot friendly robot art GRUNMICRO mike slobot friendly robot art GRUNMICRO

Saturday, August 15, 2009

robot snob interview...

i just finished an interview with robotsnob.com which is a comprehensive site dedicated to all things robot. i am flattered that my slobots were deemed "Must Have" robots for August 14. thanks to Robot Snob, and take a trip over to read the interview.

Friday, August 07, 2009

incoming!!! slobot at dog days end of summer show curated by marshhouse

hey... time for an update... a slobot has landed in Charleston, WV and will be included in the Dog Days End of Summer Show. The Martian Orange Tree Herder's story goes like this: “A curious thing happened when the first Orange trees were planted on the Martian Surface. The orange trees grew into a hybrid plant / animal, in so much, that, during growing season, the orange trees began to migrate from field to field. In a moment of necessary quick thinking, the Orange Tree Herder robot was created to corral the young trees.”This slobot has a new feature, a black light reflective belly light. Contact marsh house for purchase inquiries. more pics below.

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