Recent developments in robotic technology are awe-inspiring, albeit slightly unnerving.
From robots known as BigDogs (developed by Boston Dynamics) that resemble sci-fi monsters and serve as self- balancing pack animals that support the US military in challenging terrain, to Pepper the Robot, a white humanoid construction (made by Japan’s SoftBank Robotics Corp), which is so sophisticated that it can gauge human emotions. R obots are changing the way we work, live and communicate.
These electronic marvels are also starting to infiltrate museums, where they are being used in a number of different capacities. For example, they can be used to demonstrate technological advancements in science and engineering, demystify the natural world, invigorate exhibition content, increase disabled access and act as tour guides.
The Robot Zoo – an exhibition at London’s Horniman Museum and Gardens until 29 October – is particularly interesting as it uses robots to deepen visitors’ understanding of the natural world. A series of animatronic exhibits reveal the inner workings of animals – how they see, eat, hunt and hide.
Among the highlights of this touring show, put together by Evergreen Exhibitions, is a visitor- operated chameleon that flicks out its tongue and changes colour when adjustments are made to the television screens that form the core of its body.
The use of household objects makes complex biological systems easier for young audiences to relate to, says Joanne Hatton, the keeper of natural history at the Horniman. The large mechanical exhibits also allow for more concise interpretation.
There are diagrams of each robot animal describing its anatomy, says Hatton. “It allows you to be more focused in how you interpret the exhibits.”
Museums tend to display robots to shed light on the latest developments in engineering, design and technology, but last year the Victoria and Albert Museum in London demonstrated how these complicated mechanics could also be informed by nature.
The museum kicked off its engineering season with the installation of the Elytra Filament Pavilion, which explored how naturally- occurring fibre structures can inform architecture.
The pavilion changed its configuration over the course of the season – which ended in November 2016 – in response to data on how people moved under the canopy.
In contrast, the exhibition Robots – a new show at London’s Science Museum – explores humanity’s pursuit to recreate itself in mechanised form, exploring why, rather than how, robots are built.
Ian Blatchford, the director of the Science Museum Group, says: “To look through the eyes of those who built, commissioned or gazed on these mesmerising mechanical creations over the past 500 years, reveals so much about humanity’s hopes, fears, dreams and delusions.”
Among the 100-plus robots on display is an automaton monk (c.1560), which was designed
to walk across a table praying; while moving his lips, raising a crucifix and rosary, and beating his breast in contrition.
The monk, one of three in the world, was created as an offering to God from King Philip II of Spain after his son recovered from a life-threatening condition. Another captivating exhibit is called the Kodomoroid, a communication android, which was made in Japan in 2014 and is one of the most human-like androids in the world. It has been designed to read the news, and during the exhibition it shares two news stories about robots every 20 minutes.
Robots can also play an active role in helping visitors navigate museums virtually and in real life. The Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, offers a service whereby disabled visitors can book a robot to explore exhibition spaces remotely. They can control the robot’s movements via a programme that can be downloaded from the museum’s website and interact with on-site visitors via a screen.
Similarly, the Musée de la Grande Guerre (Museum of the Great War) in France provides robotic guides that disabled visitors can log into remotely and use to discover the venue’s reconstructed trenches.
In 2014, art enthusiasts had the chance to explore Tate Britain's galleries after dark using robots that they operated remotely online. And the American Museum of Natural History has used robot tour guides, controlled by indigenous people in Haida Gwaii, located off the north coast of Bristish Colombia, for a display about their culture.
So robots not only have the capability to enthrall audiences, they can also be used to bring them ever closer to museum collections by allowing them to experience venues and content from new perspectives.
Human to humanoid
“Coming face to face with a mechanical human has always been a disconcerting
experience. Over the centuries, each generation has experienced this afresh as new waves of technology heralded its own curiosity-inducing robots.”
Ben Russell is the lead curator of the Science Museum’s exhibition Robots
From robots known as BigDogs (developed by Boston Dynamics) that resemble sci-fi monsters and serve as self- balancing pack animals that support the US military in challenging terrain, to Pepper the Robot, a white humanoid construction (made by Japan’s SoftBank Robotics Corp), which is so sophisticated that it can gauge human emotions. R obots are changing the way we work, live and communicate.
These electronic marvels are also starting to infiltrate museums, where they are being used in a number of different capacities. For example, they can be used to demonstrate technological advancements in science and engineering, demystify the natural world, invigorate exhibition content, increase disabled access and act as tour guides.
The Robot Zoo – an exhibition at London’s Horniman Museum and Gardens until 29 October – is particularly interesting as it uses robots to deepen visitors’ understanding of the natural world. A series of animatronic exhibits reveal the inner workings of animals – how they see, eat, hunt and hide.
Among the highlights of this touring show, put together by Evergreen Exhibitions, is a visitor- operated chameleon that flicks out its tongue and changes colour when adjustments are made to the television screens that form the core of its body.
The use of household objects makes complex biological systems easier for young audiences to relate to, says Joanne Hatton, the keeper of natural history at the Horniman. The large mechanical exhibits also allow for more concise interpretation.
There are diagrams of each robot animal describing its anatomy, says Hatton. “It allows you to be more focused in how you interpret the exhibits.”
Museums tend to display robots to shed light on the latest developments in engineering, design and technology, but last year the Victoria and Albert Museum in London demonstrated how these complicated mechanics could also be informed by nature.
The museum kicked off its engineering season with the installation of the Elytra Filament Pavilion, which explored how naturally- occurring fibre structures can inform architecture.
The pavilion changed its configuration over the course of the season – which ended in November 2016 – in response to data on how people moved under the canopy.
In contrast, the exhibition Robots – a new show at London’s Science Museum – explores humanity’s pursuit to recreate itself in mechanised form, exploring why, rather than how, robots are built.
Ian Blatchford, the director of the Science Museum Group, says: “To look through the eyes of those who built, commissioned or gazed on these mesmerising mechanical creations over the past 500 years, reveals so much about humanity’s hopes, fears, dreams and delusions.”
Among the 100-plus robots on display is an automaton monk (c.1560), which was designed
to walk across a table praying; while moving his lips, raising a crucifix and rosary, and beating his breast in contrition.
The monk, one of three in the world, was created as an offering to God from King Philip II of Spain after his son recovered from a life-threatening condition. Another captivating exhibit is called the Kodomoroid, a communication android, which was made in Japan in 2014 and is one of the most human-like androids in the world. It has been designed to read the news, and during the exhibition it shares two news stories about robots every 20 minutes.
Robots can also play an active role in helping visitors navigate museums virtually and in real life. The Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, offers a service whereby disabled visitors can book a robot to explore exhibition spaces remotely. They can control the robot’s movements via a programme that can be downloaded from the museum’s website and interact with on-site visitors via a screen.
Similarly, the Musée de la Grande Guerre (Museum of the Great War) in France provides robotic guides that disabled visitors can log into remotely and use to discover the venue’s reconstructed trenches.
In 2014, art enthusiasts had the chance to explore Tate Britain's galleries after dark using robots that they operated remotely online. And the American Museum of Natural History has used robot tour guides, controlled by indigenous people in Haida Gwaii, located off the north coast of Bristish Colombia, for a display about their culture.
So robots not only have the capability to enthrall audiences, they can also be used to bring them ever closer to museum collections by allowing them to experience venues and content from new perspectives.
Human to humanoid
“Coming face to face with a mechanical human has always been a disconcerting
experience. Over the centuries, each generation has experienced this afresh as new waves of technology heralded its own curiosity-inducing robots.”
Ben Russell is the lead curator of the Science Museum’s exhibition Robots
