Cubebot, Areaware, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, USA

[Airicist]

Manufacturer - Areaware (https://pr.ai/showthread.php?6430)

Designer - David Weeks

Website - cubebot.com (http://www.cubebot.com)

areaware.com/collections/cubebot (https://www.areaware.com/collections/cubebot)

[Airicist]

https://youtu.be/V9AKu0ym_ak

David Weeks: Cubebot

Uploaded on Apr 19, 2010


Robot toys are usually made of plastic and require batteries but not this one! Inspired by the Japanese Shinto Kumi-ki puzzles, the Cubebot is a non-traditional take on the toy robot by joining ancient Japanese traditions with contemporary toy culture.

The Cubebots sturdy hardwood frame can hold many poses, and his elastic-band muscles and durable wood limbs allow his body to stand up to rambunctious play. When playtime is over, he neatly folds up into an unassuming cube.

[Airicist]

https://youtu.be/lnaShYEMFZE

Cubebot

Uploaded on Aug 24, 2010

[Airicist]

http://vimeo.com/135584730

Cubebot Ninjas
August 6, 2015


In this clever stop-motion style animated video, two Cubebot ninjas battle it out and are greeted with a surprise visitor.
Cubebot is inspired by Japanese Shinto Kumi-ki puzzles, the Cubebot is a non-traditional take on the toy robot. Cubebots's powerful hardwood frame can hold dozens poses, and his elastic-band muscles and durable wood limbs make him impervious to breakage. When it's time for him to rest, he folds into a perfect cube. An enduring classic that will withstand generations of play.

[Airicist]

https://youtu.be/94AGpboRVwg

Cubebot by David Weeks has "a life of its own" on Instagram

Published on Feb 29, 2016


New York designer David Weeks reflects on how the simple toy robot he designed became a social media sensation in the next movie from our exclusive video series.

Designed by Weeks in 2010, Cubebot is a wooden toy robot with elastic joints that can be positioned in a variety of different poses.

Inspired by Japanese three-dimensional wooden puzzles called Shinto Kumi-ki, the toy figure folds up into a perfect cube.

"I set out a challenge for us to make this simple shape that folds out and turns into a man," Weeks says in the movie, which was filmed at his studio in New York.

"It's just a simple cube and we cut it up to create each anatomical piece of the body."

It took Weeks and his team just one day to make the first Cubebot by hand.

The toys are now produced by New York company Areaware in a variety of different colours and sizes, but Weeks is glad that Cubebot still has a very simple aesthetic.

"There's no custom moulds or anything, his eyes and mouth are just done with a router," he says.

"All the coloured ones have a different face and those are also done with what you use in a wood shop. So it's just literally starting with wood and creating the final version."

Read more on Dezeen:
David Weeks' folding wooden Cubebot toy "has a life of its own" on Instagram (https://www.dezeen.com/2016/02/29/video-interview-cubebot-folding-wooden-robot-toy-david-weeks-areaware-movie)