Rolling Ball Sculpture & Kinetic Art Resources

Over the years I’ve collected websites, artists, books and mechanical resources related to rolling ball sculpture, kinetic art, automata and mechanical movement. Some have influenced my own work, while others are simply fascinating examples of artists and makers combining art, engineering and motion.

Wood That Works by David C. Roy Each kinetic sculpture is a wooden machine designed to produce interesting patterns. The sculptures move solely by the controlled release of energy from a spring. No other motor, battery or power source is used.

Kool Kinetics – A site dedicated to kinetic art and mechanical creations, including Rube Goldberg machines, wind-powered mobiles, rolling ball sculptures and computer-generated motion systems.

507 Mechanical Movements – A classic reference for mechanical movements, with animations showing how hundreds of mechanisms work. A useful source of ideas for anyone interested in kinetic sculpture and mechanical design.

SYYN Labs – Creators of elaborate Rube Goldberg machines and large-scale mechanical chain reactions, including the famous OK Go “This Too Shall Pass” machine.

Mechanisms 101 – An educational resource with interactive animations that make mechanical engineering and machine mechanisms easier to understand.

Cabaret Mechanical Theatre – A collection of contemporary automata and mechanical art by artists from around the world. A great resource for anyone interested in kinetic sculpture, mechanical movement and creative engineering.

The Mobile Factory by Unigami – Beautiful hanging mobiles inspired by the tradition of kinetic sculpture and the work of artists such as Alexander Calder.

About Rolling Ball Sculptures and Kinetic Art – A website devoted to rolling ball sculpture, kinetic art, automata, unusual machines and mechanical creations made from wood, paper and other materials.

The Big Book of Gizmos and Gadgets – A collection of clever mechanical projects, contraptions and moving creations for makers interested in building unusual mechanisms.

Making Things Move • DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists and Artists – Dustyn Roberts' excellent introduction to creating moving mechanisms for art and engineering projects. Covers gears, linkages, motors and other mechanical systems useful to kinetic artists and makers.

Arthur Ganson - Kinetic sculptor known for elegant mechanical sculptures that transform gears, motors and simple mechanisms into expressive works of art.

Andrew Smith - Kinetic artist creating imaginative mechanical sculptures from metal, found objects and carefully engineered moving parts.

Mark Bischof – Creates intricate kinetic sculptures powered entirely by gravity. His mechanical artworks use rolling balls, tracks and precisely constructed mechanisms to produce continuous sequences of motion.

Didier Legros • Rolling Ball Kinetic Sculptor – French kinetic artist creating elaborate rolling ball sculptures filled with tracks, mechanisms and constantly changing movement. His videos are especially worth watching.

Marco Pinter – Artist whose work combines physical kinetic sculpture with digital imagery and live visualization, exploring the relationship between mechanical movement and technology.

Clock and Watch Escapement Mechanics in Motion – Animated examples showing how different clock and watch escapements work. A fascinating reference for understanding mechanisms that control and release mechanical motion.

Eddie Boes – Rolling ball sculptures combining engineering, precision construction and mechanical movement to guide balls through complex tracks and mechanisms.

Larry Lawrence – An early inspiration for my own rolling ball sculpture work. His creations helped introduce me to the possibilities of combining rolling balls, mechanical movement and sculpture.

Derek Hugger – Designer of intricate wooden kinetic sculptures, clocks and mechanical machines that combine art with engineering. Detailed woodworking plans for many of his mechanisms are also available.

Waymarking.com A useful resource for finding publicly installed rolling ball sculptures around the world, including sculptures in museums, hospitals, airports and other public spaces.

Hyper Physics – An extensive educational resource covering physics concepts including motion, energy, gravity, momentum and mechanics—all principles that come into play in rolling ball sculpture.

Bruce Gray – Los Angeles sculptor whose work includes kinetic art, rolling ball machines, mobiles, magnetic sculptures and large-scale metal artwork.

Super Plexus – A challenging three-dimensional ball maze that you rotate by hand to guide a ball through a complex series of obstacles. I own the Plexus Epic—and it’s fascinating.

Wikipedia – An overview of rolling ball sculpture, also known as rolling ball machines, including the history, mechanics and artists associated with this form of kinetic art.

George Rhoads – One of the best-known pioneers of large-scale rolling ball sculpture. His elaborate installations combine rolling balls, tracks, sound and mechanical elements and can be found in airports, hospitals, museums and other public spaces.

Colorado Springs Children’s Hospital RBS – A large rolling ball sculpture installation at Children’s Hospital Colorado in Colorado Springs. Public installations like this show how kinetic sculpture can transform waiting areas and public spaces into something playful and engaging.

Kugelbahn – A collection of rolling ball machines and marble runs demonstrating creative ways to combine gravity, tracks and mechanical movement.

The MAD Museum – The Mechanical Art & Design Museum in Stratford-upon-Avon celebrates automata, kinetic art and ingenious mechanical creations by contemporary artists and makers. See my page on their site.

Newsweek – Rolling Ball Sculpture was featured in Newsweek’s “Here Comes the Boom,” an article about the renewed popularity of marble runs and rolling ball machines. It was great to see my work included alongside this growing interest in kinetic and mechanical art.

Joseph’s Machines – Joseph Herscher creates wonderfully elaborate Rube Goldberg machines that turn simple everyday tasks into complex and entertaining mechanical chain reactions.

Puzzle Prime – A collection of puzzles, brain teasers, mechanical challenges and other curious things for people who enjoy figuring out how things work. One of my mazes is featured here - "Dragon's Hoard"

Strandbeast - Theo Jansen creates large wind-powered kinetic sculptures called Strandbeests. Built from lightweight materials and ingenious mechanical linkages, these walking machines explore the boundary between art, engineering and lifelike movement.

Reuben Margolin – Kinetic Artist - Reuben Margolin creates large-scale kinetic sculptures using motors, pulleys, cables and precisely engineered mechanisms to produce complex, flowing wave patterns and organic motion. His work is an excellent example of mechanics becoming visual art.

George Rhoads Rolling Ball Sculpture – San José Airport - George Rhoads is one of the best-known rolling ball sculpture artists. His audio-kinetic ball machine at San José Mineta International Airport combines rolling balls, mechanical movement and sound; a larger 16-foot version is displayed at The Tech Interactive in San José.

The MAD Museum – Mechanical Art & Design - A museum in Stratford-upon-Avon, England devoted to kinetic art, automata and mechanical design. Its collection includes interactive mechanical sculptures, marble runs and rolling ball machines from artists and builders around the world.

MAD Museum – Kinetic Artists & Resources - The MAD Museum's collection of kinetic artists, automata makers, mechanical designers and related resources from around the world. A useful jumping-off point for discovering other artists working with movement and mechanisms.

Wintergatan – Marble Machine - Martin Molin’s ongoing Marble Machine project combines thousands of mechanical parts, gears, lifting mechanisms and rolling marbles into programmable musical machines. His extensive build documentation is a fascinating look at prototyping, mechanical design, failures and redesigns.

Wintergatan – Marble Machine 3 Documentation - Detailed documentation of the development of Marble Machine 3, including engineering, mechanisms, design revisions and downloadable project information. A great resource for anyone interested in the mechanics behind complex marble machines.

Arthur Ganson – Kinetic Sculpture - Arthur Ganson creates wonderfully inventive kinetic sculptures using gears, wire, motors and deceptively simple mechanical systems. His work demonstrates how engineering and mechanical movement can become expressive sculpture.

507 Mechanical Movements - An online edition of Henry T. Brown’s classic collection of mechanical movements, with hundreds of mechanisms involving gears, cams, linkages, ratchets and other mechanical devices. Many of the original illustrations have also been animated.

Tom Harold – What a Tool - Rolling ball sculptor Tom Harold discusses the track-building clamps I designed for holding and spacing rails during fabrication, and how they can speed up the process of building rolling ball sculptures.

The MAD Museum – Matthew Gaulden - The Mechanical Art & Design Museum in the UK features my work and the story of how I began building rolling ball sculptures, from my early experiments through hundreds of completed kinetic sculptures.

Wikipedia – Rolling Ball Sculpture - An overview of rolling ball sculpture, kinetic ball machines and related mechanical art, with links to artists and resources in the field—including RollingBallSculpture.com.

Rory Buckley – Matthew Gaulden Rolling Ball Sculptures - A collection of Matthew Gaulden rolling ball sculptures featuring several large early works, including wall-mounted and freestanding kinetic sculptures.

PoolCueGuru – Cool Kinetic Sculpture with Billiard Balls - A feature on one of my stainless steel kinetic sculptures built with 1½-inch billiard balls, with links to my rolling ball sculpture work and building information.