There’s just something about assemblage sculpture of robots, in which the artist picks from the cast-off streamlined spare parts of yesterday and makes something entirely original – though not entirely new – out of those old gauges, speaker grilles, canisters and vacuum tubes. Like I say, there’s just something about them and that something never fails to make me smile.

So thanks to Dark Roasted Blend I’ve been smiling this morning.

These are just a couple of pictures of Mike Rivamonte’s assemblage sculptures. My favorite listed component (so far!) is "Australian drive-in speaker". Because the dedicated roboticist will go straight to the Antipodes for his diodes.

There are also rockets, including some resin-cast versions, listed on Rivamonte’s home page, and for those of us with more appreciation than ready cash there are some awfully nice prints, too. Wonderful stuff!

It’s always Buck Rogers day here in the Secret Laboratory, but I don’t always have anything to show for it. Therefore, let’s take a moment to admire Teresa N. Fischer’s painting of vintage Buck Rogers toys arranged in a still life, complete with a hanging backdrop of the starriest stars imaginable.

This 20" by 20" oil is currently on display at the Elliott Fouts Gallery in Sacramento, California through May 3rd.