You’ve got to see them to believe them. Strandbeests, Dutch for “beach animals,” are kinetic sculptures made from PVC tubes by the artist-engineer Theo Jansen. In this age of augmented reality and autonomous vehicles, the mesmerizingly lifelike movements of strandbeests are powered by the wind or a gentle push. Strandbeests come in all shapes and sizes. Some look like herds of antelope, others like gigantic undulating fish. But they share a common design element: gears that convert rotary motion into moving legs able to transverse flat surfaces. Jansen started working on his first strandbeest over 25 years ago. Since then he has continually optimized and expanded their design. The first one, which was literally taped together, didn’t have legs that could stand. Jansen’s latest creations include pressurized air bottles and water detection systems. He hopes one day to leave them on the beaches of his beloved North Sea to survive by themselves. Jansen got his start as an artist-engineer by blowing up a fake flying saucer and unleashing it on his hometown—causing panic and a police chase. See below for amazingly beautiful footage of strandbeests in action; plus instructions on how to make your own using Arduino. Artistic nerds are the best.

It's Flashback Friday! Enjoy this favorite from the Curio Cabinet archives.
 

Ever wonder how burgers stack in commercials? Just ask photographer Steve Giralt, who combines photography and cinematography to create what he calls visual engineering. He begins each shoot by designing automations, like the custom contraption holding the burger pictured above, around the demands of each subject. The burger's components balance on tension wires, held by two digital wings, and as the wires release, the wings move out of frame. A camera on a robotic arm recedes, appropriately focusing the frame and snapping and filming away, as a strobe illuminates the burger parts' plummet. It all happens in a matter of seconds using Giralt’s custom-built Precision Arduino Timing Relay Imaging Controller. The controller operates as a sort of feedback loop ensuring all operations occur in tandem. If this all sounds complex, it is; Giralt considers himself a technologist, and fabricates electronics in creative ways to meet his needs. His novel methods have won him advertising gigs with Budweiser, Starbucks, and PepsiCo, to name a few, and he encourages all photographers to use developing technologies to find their own unique successes. Just keep a few towels on hand—the process can be… messy.
 

Below: more of Giralt's handywork and a video of him discussing his process.
 

It's Flashback Friday... and National Fast Food Day. Chew on this favorite from the Curio Cabinet archives.
 

Ever wonder how burgers stack in commercials? Just ask photographer Steve Giralt, who combines photography and cinematography to create what he calls visual engineering. He begins each shoot by designing automations, like the custom contraption holding the burger pictured above, around the demands of each subject. The burger's components balance on tension wires, held by two digital wings, and as the wires release, the wings move out of frame. A camera on a robotic arm recedes, appropriately focusing the frame and snapping and filming away, as a strobe illuminates the burger parts' plummet. It all happens in a matter of seconds using Giralt’s custom-built Precision Arduino Timing Relay Imaging Controller. The controller operates as a sort of feedback loop ensuring all operations occur in tandem. If this all sounds complex, it is; Giralt considers himself a technologist, and fabricates electronics in creative ways to meet his needs. His novel methods have won him advertising gigs with Budweiser, Starbucks, and PepsiCo, to name a few, and he encourages all photographers to use developing technologies to find their own unique successes. Just keep a few towels on hand—the process can be… messy.
 

Below: more of Giralt's handywork and a video of him discussing his process.
 

Ever wonder how burgers stack in commercials? Just ask photographer Steve Giralt, who combines photography and cinematography to create what he calls visual engineering. He begins each shoot by designing automations, like the custom contraption holding the burger pictured above, around the demands of each subject. The burger's components balance on tension wires, held by two digital wings, and as the wires release, the wings move out of frame. A camera on a robotic arm recedes, appropriately focusing the frame and snapping and filming away, as a strobe illuminates the burger parts' plummet. It all happens in a matter of seconds using Giralt’s custom-built Precision Arduino Timing Relay Imaging Controller. The controller operates as a sort of feedback loop ensuring all operations occur in tandem. If this all sounds complex, it is; Giralt considers himself a technologist, and fabricates electronics in creative ways to meet his needs. His novel methods have won him advertising gigs with Budweiser, Starbucks, and PepsiCo, to name a few, and he encourages all photographers to use developing technologies to find their own unique successes. Just keep a few towels on hand—the process can be… messy.
 

Below: more of Giralt's handywork and a video of him discussing his process.