I made a series of reliquaries a while back that housed small LCD screens. They explore the idea of what a modern-day relic might be. The idea is that ‘privacy’ will be cherished in the future. Currently, the reliquaries scroll my Twitter feed and Flickr photos. The idea is to make you think about your own privacy in a wired and digital world. It’s an ever-evolving piece, and what it displays will most likely change once I finish it.
The reliquaries are completely hand-made, from copper sheet. All the rivets, hinges, and locks were carefully crafted over several weeks. I really enjoy metalsmithing and hope to do a lot more in the future. Maybe I’ll do some how-to’s here on MAKE!
There has been a lot of excitement around the Chumby Guts Kit in the Maker Shed. I had a kit sitting around in my studio, and it was completely naked! That just wouldn’t do, so I decided to use one of my reliquaries as the enclosure for it.
One of my favorite parts of this piece is the locking mechanism. I always try to add a little secret detail in my work for people to discover. In this case, it’s a little cutout in the latch.
I was never really happy with the results of the LCD screen-based versions. The pieces didn’t have sound, and the screens were just too small and not interactive. Chumby will change this. As you can see in the picture above, I’m not quite finished. I still have to cut out a larger opening, and a series of holes for the speakers.
Now that I’ve added Chumby Guts to the third reliquary, I think I’ll add them to the other two as well.
Pick up your own Chumby Guts in the Maker Shed.
In the Maker Shed:
In the Maker Shed: Chumby Guts
ADVERTISEMENT
