Description

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This fascinating book charts toy robot design of the last half of the 20th century and explores Japanese aesthetics in tinplate toys, especially robots. Over 200 photographs and original conceptual drawings illustrate this captivating history, from the wind-up walking mechanism of the "Diamond Planet Robot" to the sophisticated "Answer Game Machine," the first robot computer capable of doing mathematical problems. Tomy, Horikawa, Waco, and Sony are just a few of the manufacturers whose robotic designs are featured here. The captions provide much relevant information, including date, size, manufacturer, and current values. This important book is of compelling interest to historians, collectors, designers, and students of Japanese studies and popular culture in the golden age of toy production.

About the Author

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Alan Bunkum is an artist, lecturer, and of Head of Fine Art at Loughborough University, UK. His fascination in toys began while studying at the Slade School of Fine Art in London in the 1970s, when he discovered robot prints and sculptures by Eduardo Paolozzi. He possesses one of the largest collections of toy robots in the UK.