Welcome to my new blog. 

You will find here all the latest news on my automata, exhibitions and commissions.

To view videos of all automata models working click here.

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Telling Stories Exhibition
24th July - 5 September 2010
Borough Museum and Art Gallery
Newcastle-under-Lyme
Staffordshire
ST5 0QP
www.newcastle-staffs.gov.uk

I was commissioned by Newcastle-Under-Lyme Art Gallery and Museum to produce a installation/exhibition based on the book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl, for their summer exhibition 2010. The main feature of the exhibition is Willy Wonka's Everlasting Gobstopper Machine. The Gobstopper machine (marble run) is operated by a push button switch, which activates the motor to pump the gobstoppers around the many runs. In total there are 8 runs which the gobstoppers can take. The Gobstopper machine is roughly 150cm x 100cm x 100cm in size.

To view a video of The Telling Stories Exhibition click here.

Museum article on exhibition:
This summer’s family-friendly exhibition promises to be a wonderful experience and visual spectacle for all members of the family. This year we have commissioned a number of artists and art organisations to produce artwork in response to some of the most popular children’s stories of all time. The Main Gallery will present five defined areas, each area recreating the world as depicted in each of the following stories:

CS Lewis / The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe;
Lewis Carroll / Alice in Wonderland;
J. M. Barrie / Peter Pan
Roald Dahl / Charlie & The Chocolate Factory.

So whether you take a wander through Narnia; help out in the Chocolate Factory or avoid the enormous 18 foot Crocodile from ‘Neverland’, this highly interactive exhibition promises a great few hours of fun for all our visitors.
Accompanying this exhibition, will be lots of fun trail activities, and things for the family to do, taking you around the exhibition and the Museum as a whole.

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Willy Wonka’s Everlasting Gobstopper Machine.

I have made this very large marble run (100cm x 100cm x 150cm) as the main feature of the Telling Stories exhibition I’m taking part in. I was commissioned to create a exhibition/installation based on the book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. The marble run is operated by a push button switch. The marbles used are multi coloured to resemble everlasting gobstoppers. I worked on the marble run 6 full days a week and in total took me 5 months to make.

Click here to watch a video of Willy Wonka’s
Everlasting Gobstopper Machine.

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Gadgets, Gizmos and Wondrous Widgets
(New Generation Space)
19th June - 29th August 2010
Borough Museum and Art Gallery
Newcastle-under-Lyme
Staffordshire
ST5 0QP
www.newcastle-staffs.gov.uk

This is the debut solo exhibition by Sophie Naylor, an Illustrator and Automatist. Sophie’s mechanical automated models reflect British culture in an eccentric, quirky humorous context. Her aim is to publicise and promote the historical art of automata into the eyes of the public within the 21st century.Her automated models are produced from a wide range of materials, creating a contextually engaging outcome. Sophie takes inspiration from everyday life, nostalgic eras, Victorian inventions, contraptions, customs, traditions and historical events. This exhibition will guarantee an insight into the quirky inventive world of ‘Britishness’ explored through a manner of thingamajigs and whatchamacallits.

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3X3 Professional Show Winners 2010 announced.
Professional Show NO.7

Early on this year I entered the annual 3X3 international contemporary Illustration competition. I was delighted to find out that I had successfully gotten through as one of the winners. I entered a photograph of one of my automata models, “Off to the Allotment”. My winning entry will be published in the 3x3 Illustration Annual No.7. in the three-dimensional section.

3X3 article:
PROFESSIONAL SHOW NO. 7
The judges have voted and we're pleased to announce the winners of this year'sProShow. It's our largest show ever. Not only were there more entries, there were more winners and more medallists. Half of our winners were from outside the US making 3x3's ProShow truly international.
Getting a medal in our show is never easy but the quality of this year's entries resulted in far more winners being named by the judges. Just to get in the show you must receive a majority of votes from our nine judges. To receive a medal you must receive at least eight judge's votes and to receive the top awards you must receive all nine judge's votes.
You'll notice some very familiar names among our winners but also quite a few new faces made this year's cut. And in looking over the show there were very few weak pieces among the non-winners—the work was at it's highest level ever. Congratulations to all.
Click here to see the complete list of this year's winners.

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