Theo Jansen’s New Strandbeest Marches onto the Beach

Posted on 14/08/2018 by Conner Flynn

If You are a fan of Theo Jansen’s Strandbeest creations, you are going to love this. A recently released video shows off the evolution of his mechanical creatures, and there’s also a video of the new UMINAMI model he created this year.

Just in case you aren’t familiar with these majestic man-made beasts, Strandbeests are skeletal structures made from plastic tubing that walk along the beach, and are powered by the wind.

It’s interesting to see all of the different versions that he has made and how far these beasts have come over the years. People love these unique creations because they are creative, magical and full of wonder. If you ask me, Jansen’s latest design is his best yet. It looks pretty graceful doing its thing. The UMINAMI is not only graceful, but it looks fast too.

Theo says that he eventually wants “to put these animals out in herds on the beaches, so they will live their own lives.” I think that a herd of these things might be a bit creepy, but I really want to see that now. You know, someday some race is going to dig these up from the dirt and think they were the skeletons of living beasts.

[via Boing Boing via Geekologie]

You can now build your own miniature walking Strandbeest!

Posted on 27/07/2018 by Sarang Sheth

Chances are, whether you’re a designer or not, you’ll have seen Theo Jansen’s massive kinetic sculptures walking across a beach in BMW’s advertisement. Titled the Strandbeest, these incredible automata gracefully walk across land using wind as their driving force, as they move, much like animals do, using large wooden legs in a graceful fashion. The Strandbeest was one of the reasons I fell in love with industrial design, and the fact that you can build your own miniature versions today is giving me major nostalgic feels!

The Heyzlass Mini Strandbeest is a miniature replication of Jansen’s large, hulking creature. Made out of plastic and built to be a spitting image of the original, the Mini Strandbeest comes with a fan at one end that catches the wind, propelling the legs to move in their cyclical fashion and have the entire toy gently sashay across a flat surface. Made from 117 separate parts that don’t need any special tools to assemble, the Mini Strandbeest can be built in just around 90 minutes, which is well worth the endless hours of joy you’ll get from observing one of the most fascinating mechanical actions of all time!

Designer: Heyzlass

Click Here to Buy Now

Now You Can Bulid Your Own Strandbeest

Posted on 12/07/2018 by Conner Flynn

By now everyone has seen the videos of the Strandbeest kinetic sculptures walking the beach. Theo Jansen’s incredible walking creatures moves by using the power of the wind. It’s very impressive. Guess what? Now, you can build your own on a much smaller scale. This desktop version is pretty much a perfect replica.

The Mini Strandbeest Kit, much like other model kits you know and love, comes with illustrated and written instructions that will guide you through the build process. You won’t need any special tools, or even special skills to build it.

This is a good project to include the kids since it involves mechanical parts and wind power. They might learn some neat things. They’ll be impressed too because it works just like its full-scale counterpart. Just blow that pinwheel or use a fan to get this thing walking. The kit should take you about an hour and a half to build, and since it has small parts, you’ll definitely want to supervise the little ones while building it.

You can find the Mini Strandbeest Kit on Amazon for just $12. This looks like a fun project, whether you include the kids or not. This is a fun little toy that’s rewarding to build. Once you build one, you have a cool new plaything for your desk too.

[via Mike Shouts]

Adam Savage Builds a Walking Strandbeest

Posted on 15/12/2016 by Conner Flynn

Adam Savage is like a modern day Leonardo Da Vinci. I don’t think there’s anything he can’t do. This time, for the latest project in Tested’s One Day Builds series, he built a pedal-powered walking Strandbeest!

Obviously, the build was inspired by the walking machines of Dutch artist Theo Jansen, who gave Savage some advice about how to build one of his own. This was an interesting project for Adam Savage since he assembled his own design as an Artist in Residence at the Exploratorium science museum in San Francisco. The outdoor build was open for to the public, so he had to test and problem-solve the build on site. No pressure.

He did a great job, but as you’ll see in the video, things get tricky thanks to some shoelaces getting stuck, and miscalculation or two. In the words of Mr. Savage himself: “Failure is always an option.”

[via Laughing Squid]

This Walking Mechanical Skull Your Daily Nightmare Fuel

Posted on 08/08/2016 by Conner Flynn

This is the creepiest thing you will see all day. I promise. This mechanical skull comes from Japanese sculptor Y Nakajima, and is inspired by Theo Jansen’s Strandbeest. I’m telling you now, don’t watch unless you want to have nightmares. It is a walking nightmare that you can’t unsee.

Theo Jansen’s work is kinda creepy, but this thing takes it to a whole new level. The legs are tiny compared to the great big skull which is just out for a casual stroll and that’s just one of the things that makes this so scary looking.

The only thing missing is grasping arms with pincers, trying to rip the flesh from your bones.

[via Laughing Squid]

This Strandbeest Inspired Bike Is a Slow Ride

Posted on 29/06/2016 by Conner Flynn

This is the sort of nightmarish bike H.R. Giger might sell you if he owned a creepy bike store. It’s slow, creepy and inspired by the Theo Jansen’s Strandbeest. This thing was built by California art and engineering collective CARV. Obviously, they don’t have to get to places fast.

This bike has over 450 custom made components and took over 700 hours to build. Pedaling the bike drives four walking legs in the rear.

It’s like having a nice leisurely bike ride while being stalked by a giant spider. Not my idea of fun. I want to outrun spiders, not constantly be chased by them at 2 MPH. Now if they put legs in front and some mandibles, that’s a different story.

[via Geekologie]

Remote-controlled Mini Strandbeest: Thighmiya

Posted on 04/02/2016 by Lambert Varias

Theo Jansen’s kinetic sculptures are meant to be powered by wind – and occasionally a hamster – but YouTuber Maxime G found a way to tame a Mini Strandbeest. Maxime G used a couple of Arduino Nanos, a 3V motor and a Nordic RF transmitter to make the mechanical creature move on command.

Check out the video’s description on YouTube for Maxime G’s parts list.

Some might say turning a Strandbeest into a cyborg ruins the point of the sculptures. I say we pilot the life-sized ones as well.

[via Hack A Day]

3D Printed Strandbeest: Still Alive

Posted on 09/03/2015 by Lambert Varias

Dutch artist Theo Jansen is known for his strandbeest – kinetic sculptures that are powered by the wind and have life-like gait. We’ve featured a couple of fan-made strandbeest, but it turns out Jansen is also selling miniature ones that are printed by Shapeways.

This is the latest version of Jansen’s 3D printed strandbeest, the Animaris Geneticus Bellus. It has slimmer legs and better joints compared to its predecessors. You can push it forward to make it walk, but you can also equip it with a wind-blown propeller to make it self-sufficient like its bigger brothers.

Animate your browser and head to Jansen’s Shapeways shop to order a strandbeest. It costs $121 (USD), while the propeller costs $46.

[via 3D Print]

Hamster-powered Strandbeest Will Help Hamsters Rule the World

Posted on 03/04/2014 by Conner Flynn

Hamsters now have a new mech that they can use to conquer the world. This neat Strandbeest is powered by a hamster in a wheel. The hamster inside turns some gears, which move the mechanism forward. Your kids will love it as a hamster toy, but your hamster will love it because he/she will now have a vehicle. World domination can’t be far behind.

It’s pretty creepy watching a hamster move such a machine. Maybe we should just bow down to our new masters now and accept our fate.

Maybe the cats will help us. Cats are our friends right? Right?

[CrabFu via Dude I Want That]

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