Media Releases

The Robotic Chair Falls Apart at the Children's Museum
Posted by Children's Museum Admin (cmadmin) on Thursday, 13th September, 2007 at 1:52 PM
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Beginning the evening of September 21st visitors will experience the many changes and improvements the Museum has undergone over the past few months and be able to see, at no cost, the newest exhibit; The Robotic Chair.

Developed by Canadian artists Max Dean, Matt Donovan and American artist Raffaello D'Andrea, the Robotic Chair, was on display at Toronto's Luminato in June. After a brief stop at the Toronto International Film Festival, it will open for a four month run in Waterloo Region.

It is funded by the Musagetes Foundation and in collaboration with the Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery. The Chair intermittently falls apart into several scattered pieces then independently and randomly puts itself back together.

"This is the fourth such collaboration with KWAG and we very much value their partnering with us in this unique presentation. We also are grateful to the Musagetes Foundation and their ongoing support. Their vision and generosity from the beginning is now beginning to pay dividends," said David Marskell, the Museum's CEO. He went on to say, "The Chair is the perfect exhibit to launch New Media at the Museum in anticipation of the recently announced relationship with the University of Waterloo. The Chair allows the mind to wonder of the possibilities in blending art and technology. Having seen it in action, I will be most interested in the reaction of our visitors and to hear their interpretation of what they have witnessed."

The Official Opening will take place the night before when Members only, VIPs and the media will be invited. Max Dean will make a special appearance that evening to interact with children and talk about his creation.

On Friday September 21st, in celebration of the Museum's fourth anniversary, all visitors will be admitted free courtesy of Sun Life Financial. The party will also coincide with the Contemporary Art Forum of Kitchener and Area's (CAFKA) opening of Haptic.  The Museum will resume regular autumn hours on the following Saturday.

In addition to seeing the Robotic Chair, there will be other new exhibits on display, such as a traveling exhibition, Techno Bio Style and the Museum's collaborative community project, The Urban Streetscape. Children's activities and crafts will be available in addition to a digital display of short films made this summer by Museum campers.