Kinetic San Francisco by Scott Weaver: 35 Years & 100,000 Toothpicks

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Kinetic San Francisco by Scott Weaver: 35 Years & 100,000 Toothpicks Posted: 03 May 2011 06:05 AM PDT Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   Scott Weaver has spent the last 35 years (on and off) on his ‘Rolling Through the Bay’ masterpiece. A kinetic art sculpture of the beautiful city of San Francisco. Using more than 100,000 toothpicks, Scott meticulously recreates all of the famous landmarks and destinations. Why spend so much time on something some deem trivial? Because it’s art, it’s his passion and that’s all that matters. Enjoy!   2. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   3. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   4. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   5. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   ROLLING THROUGH THE BAY BY SCOTT WEAVER   ‘Rolling Through the Bay’ is 9 feet tall (2.7m), 7 feet wide (2.1m) and 30 inches deep (0.76m). The sculpture features four ping pong ball paths that roll through different landmarks of San Francisco. Scott estimates the project has taken over 3,000 hours and he only uses one brand of glue, Elmer’s. The toothpicks vary depending on the intricacy of the particular building/section. They come from all over the world, given to Scott by friends and family. To really get an idea of the awesomeness of this sculpture, check out this guided tour of San Francisco by Scott himself!   6. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   7. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   8. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   9. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   10. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   WHAT IS KINETIC ART?   Kinetic art is art that contains moving parts or depends on motion for its effect. The moving parts are generally powered by wind, a motor, or the observer. Kinetic art is broad term that encompasses a wide variety of overlapping techniques and styles. Kinetic sculptures are examples of kinetic art in the form of sculpture or three dimensions. In common with other types of kinetic art, kinetic sculptures have parts that move or that are in motion. [Source: Wikipedia]   11. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   12. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   13. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   14. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   15. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   SCOTT WEAVER – ARTIST’S BIO   My family lived in San Francisco for 3 generations. My great-grandfather had a winery in the 1880′s at Montgomery and Jackson St, about a block from where the Transamerica pyramid is located. My grandparents had a house at 518 12th Ave, between Anza and Balboa. My mom and dad had a house on Quintera, then moved to Marin, where I was born. I started building toothpick sculptures in 1968, when I was 8 years old. My early structures were abstract and about 2 – 4 feet tall. I built one sculpture that had a ping-pong ball roll through it. In 1974 I started a new sculpture and added the Golden Gate Bridge and Lombard Street, that also had a ping-pong ball roll through it. This is what started what is now Rolling Through the Bay. Over the years I have worked on Rolling Through the Bay, on-and-off, sometimes not working on it for years at-a-time, to do other projects and get married to my beautiful wife, Rochelle, and have a wonderful son, Tyler. I love working with toothpicks and hope to do so for years to come. [Source: Rollingthroughthebay.com]   16. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   17. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   18. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   19. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO   20. Photograph by THE TINKERING STUDIO       If you enjoyed this post, the Sifter highly recommends:   The Incredible ‘Screwed Up’ Sculptures of Andrew Myers

Picture of the Day: ‘Crystal’ Ice Cave in Iceland Posted: 02 May 2011 02:00 PM PDT   ‘CRYSTA’L ICE CAVE IN SKAFTAFELL, ICELAND   Photograph via Örvar Atli Þorgeirsson   Photographer’s Description: Some of the magic beauty of glacier ice lies under its outer surface. One either needs to strip the surface layer or go underneath it to see its real beauty. The centuries old ice coming down the slopes of Öræfajökull via Svínafellsjökull glacier has had almost all of the air pressed out of the ice. Once air has been pressed out the ice turns into this magically blue crystal like ice. The outer surface of this ice (the surface of the glacier) gets bombarded by weather, sun-rays, dust and other things and it transforms the crystal blue ice white. Hidden under the white surface is the blue ice. This blue ice can be seen however under certain circumstances. It can be seen in winter after long periods of rain when the surface layer of the glacier has been washed away. It can be seen in ice-caves like this one (unsafe in summer) and on floating icebergs that have recently rolled over. This ice cave is on the edge of the glacier where it enters into a lagoon. It is only possible to access it when the lagoon is frozen. Ice caves are in general unstable things and can collapse at any time. They are however much more stable in winter when the cold temperatures harden the ice. Even so we could hear constant cracking sounds inside the cave. It was not because it was going to collapse but because the cave was moving along with the glacier itself. Each time the glacier moved a millimeter loud sounds could be heard.   via Orvaratli on Flickr

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