Automata

Sailor's Dream
Crustaecean Keep-fit
Dodgem
Fire Breathing Man
The Machine
Maki Project
The Money Machine
Ride of Life

Fashion student Maki Ichikawa, from Central St Martins, asked me to provide mechanical parts to her final year collection. I thought her ideas were very strong and we both shared the love of surrealism, especially Jan Svankmajer. I had to recall many of the methods I learnt working in visual effects for TV whereby the mechanics need to be both simple and reliable - they have to work 'on the night' but don't need to last forever. This discipline was completely counter to making public art so a very refreshing experience.

Maki Ichikawa short lr from Tom Wilkinson on Vimeo.