{"id":8548,"date":"2026-09-29T08:01:46","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T15:01:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/?p=8548"},"modified":"2026-09-29T08:01:46","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T15:01:46","slug":"niklas-roy-constructs-a-functional-pendulum-clock-made-entirely-of-trash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/?p=8548","title":{"rendered":"Niklas Roy Constructs a Functional Pendulum Clock Made Entirely of Trash"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Niklas<\/p>\n

Niklas Roy<\/a> is fascinated by the convergence of art and technology. From robotics to gaming systems, the Berlin-based artist and inventor creates quirky yet thought-provoking sculptures and installations that investigate relationships between creativity, science, and tech. His mechanical contraptions<\/a> are often infused with a lighthearted twist that prompts viewers to think critically and get involved. And his most recent project draws on one of the most fundamental types of technology humans have ever developed: telling time.<\/p>\n

\u201cGlash\u00fctte Trash Clock\u201d is named for the town in Saxony<\/a>, Germany, where the artist participated in a residency this year. It\u2019s also the birthplace of the nation\u2019s renowned watchmaking industry. \u201cGlash\u00fctte is synonymous with precision and centuries-old watchmaking craft, and I wanted to make the opposite,\u201d Roy says.<\/p>\n

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The artist only used items and materials he could scrounge up locally, including tape, zip ties, hot glue, cardboard, a yardstick, pieces of plastic, and other random objects. \u201cIt runs for about half an hour, features a paperclip-escapement, a glass bottle gong, and a \u2018random complication\u2019 (which answers the fundamental question, \u2018Now or Never?\u2019).\u201d<\/p>\n

For those of us who know a bit less about how timepieces function, an escapement<\/a> is a tiny mechanism common in pendulum clocks that releases a gear as it moves, helping to advance the hands. The gong is the acoustic instrument you hear, usually struck hourly but sometimes on the half-hour. And the random complication isn\u2019t actually a clock reference at all\u2014it has to do with games and chance. While we perceive the passing of time as steady, predictable, and methodical, the added existential element generates a playful tension and a sense of wonder.<\/p>\n

See more of Roy\u2019s work on Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member<\/a> today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Niklas Roy Constructs a Functional Pendulum Clock Made Entirely of Trash<\/a> appeared first on Colossal<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Niklas Roy is fascinated by the convergence of art and technology. From robotics to gaming systems, the Berlin-based artist and inventor creates quirky yet thought-provoking sculptures and installations that investigate…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-rss"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8548","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8548"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8548\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8548"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8548"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/catbradley.io\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8548"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}