It started as a typical, time-wasting FM3 idea:
"Let's make a faux Ming-dynasty porcelain Buddha Machine!"
We had a whole back-story about how the Buddha Machine was actually invented for a Chinese emperor to help him relax.
We figured we could go to the old Imperial kilns in South China, drop off one of our machines and pick up a picture-perfect porcelain copy a few weeks later...
Instead, we had factory managers at China's biggest kilns tell us our plan was "impossible."
Others told us that it was "beyond the realm of modern technology" to copy our humble little plastic box.
We were told to seek out the industrial porcelain plants in Japan or Germany - the "only places on the planet" where they had the knowledge to copy a Buddha Machine.
Our search led us to Berlin, where artisans combined skilled craftmanship with hi-tech 3D modeling to solve the structural issues involved. But once production tests were made, a myriad of other small problems creeped into the project...
Its been a fascinating and challenging effort by more than a few very talented people. Our final results and working failures will be on display for all to see 01-03 February at the
Transmediale.07 festival for art and digital culture inside the
Akademie der Künste in central Berlin.
(photos by Carsten Stabenow)
This entry was posted
on Friday, January 19th, 2007 at 1:20 pm and is filed under News.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.