Typewriter bust: Grandfather

Cory Doctorow 4:41 am Sat May 7, 2011

Jeremy Mayer sez,

Here are a couple of photos of my latest typewriter component assemblage, Bust V (Grandfather).
The initial inspiration for the piece was that I wanted to create a self-portrait in my old age. I wanted to say something about aging, transition (particularly transition into new technology), and the place of the personal mechanical machine in modern society, all without making the piece look too "robotic". I wanted to convey a little human weakness, malaise, boredom, and pain, but with an underlying strength and pride.

With all of the news about the closing of the world's last manual typewriter assembly line, Godrej in India, and all of the buzz about typewriters in popular culture, I feel like this is a great statement about this moment. I sense a great deal of nervousness in general about the advance of technology and what that means for people who are unwilling or unable to move on to the next step. I feel like this piece speaks of that worry in many ways.

I'll be showing Bust V for the first time at Maker Faire this year, May 21-22, in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Bust V (Grandfather)

(Thanks, Jeremy!)

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