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Eloi and Morlock
艾洛伊與莫洛克
Latex, aluminium, 3D printed mechanism, electronic components, toy parts橡膠、鋁、3D 列印物件、電子零件、現成物, 90x50x50cm,2016

Eloi (2016) and Morlock (2016), accompanied by a series of drawings, are animatronic sculptures inspired by H. G. Wells’s the Time Machine (1895). With an attempt to reinterpret the novel, the artist takes the spectators on a journey through an imaginative world: a post-industrial England where the past, the present and the future co-exist. Eloi (2016) and Morlock (2016) are part of a collaborative project with British historian Simon Schaffer, explores the impact that 18th century automata had on the history of technology. Those automata were combined with the artistry of clockwork and scientific concepts, with intricate mechanisms created to simulate complex lifelike movements. The development has not only paved the way for the development of artificial intelligence and has also influenced how technology has been philosophically pondered since the Age of Enlightenment.

Through an interview conducted with Schaffer and referencing the documentary, Mechanical Marvels: Clockwork Dreams(2013), the artists created a series of mechanical installations using 3D printing, physics computing, and open source software, with the century-old artistry recreated through the use of contemporary digital technology.

啟發自英國作家H. G. 威爾斯的小說《時間機器》(1895),藝術家製作了機械裝置《艾洛伊》(2016)與《莫洛克》(2016)和系列繪畫作品.於小說中,威爾斯描寫一抵達未來 的時間旅行者,發現人類已演化成兩種族類.艾洛伊人為維多莉亞貴族的後裔,懶惰 、並且無所事事.莫洛克人為被壓迫的勞工階級的後裔,已退化為近乎野獸,並且以 艾洛伊人為食.時間旅者繼續往更遙遠的未來旅行,發現地球只剩下一灘沙,上面爬 滿怪物,太陽正走向滅亡.

以《時間機器》為藍本,藝術家帶領觀者前往一條想像的旅程,此虛構的世界基礎於後工業化的英國,過去、現在、未來共存並且相互依存. 本計劃與英國歷史學者西蒙‧謝弗合作,探討十八世紀自動機對科技史發展的影響。自 動機結合鐘錶工藝與科學概念,透過精巧的機械系統,進行複雜擬真動作。其不僅為 人工智慧的發展定下基礎,也影響了啟蒙時代以降對科技文明的哲學思考。 透過對謝弗的訪問,與紀錄片《機械奇蹟:發條夢想》為創作藍本,藝術家製一系列 的機械裝置,借用3d列印、物理運算、與開放原始碼軟體,以當代的數位科技重新詮 釋百年前的工藝。

面具製作:Schell Sculpture Studio

Mask: Schell Sculpture Studio