Most days, the new denizens of the Robotic Church lie dormant, serving as the workshop for MacMurtrie and the Amorphic Robot Works. Only during special performances does the church open its doors, allowing visitors to enter and hear hymns created in a language only robots can understand.
Thanks to the mechanical art collective Amorphic Robot Works, the former Norwegian Seaman’s Church in Red Hook, Brooklyn is slowly filling up with twisted, clanging robots that form a caterwauling orchestra of futuristic junk life when activated. Spearheaded by multimedia artist Chico MacMurtrie, the collection of 35 kinetic bots, started in the 1980s, has been steadily growing. Inside the old church that serves as the collective’s studio, the robots are arrayed on the floor, hung high on the walls, or peering over the catwalk. Most of these contraptions take on a humanoid form, varying in size from only a foot tall to a towering 15 feet. Each robot is designed to perform a unique task, creating noise by strumming strings pulled taut on its body or clanging against the floor. Some robots are controlled by pre-programmed commands, while others are played live via computer commands. Although each robot can be activated independently, the effect when the entire church space comes alive with raucous robotic rhythm is stunning.
.jpg)
