Scott Weaver is a San Francisco sculptor who spend 35 years building the most stupendously gorgeously wonderful toothpick sculpture, a kinetic piece that is a miniature of San Francisco and all that's glorious about the city. The piece has 100,000 toothpicks, and 10,000,000 measures of awesome:
Thirty five years ago I had yet to be born, but artist Scott Weaver had already begun work on this insanely complex kinetic sculpture, Rolling through the Bay, that he continues to modify and expand even today. The elaborate sculpture is comprised of multiple "tours" that move pingpong balls through neighborhoods, historical locations, and iconic symbols of San Francisco, all recreated with a little glue, some toothpicks, and an incredible amount of ingenuity. He admits in the video that there are several toothpick sculptures even larger than his, but none has the unique kinetic components he's constructed. Via his website Weaver estimates he's spent over 3,000 hours on the project, and the toothpicks have been sourced from around the world.
You can see Weaver's piece at the American Visionary Art Museum.
One man, 100,000 toothpicks, and 35 years: An incredible kinetic sculpture of San Francisco [Christopher/This is Colossal]
(via Making Light)
