Our Robot Culture: R2D2 Statue Made from a Keg of Beer!

Behold, BeertooD2, the keg that is a work of art, and a symbol of my generation. There are few things that my contemporaries love more than Star Wars, robots, and alcohol, and BeertooD2 is all three wrapped up in one. The statue is the work of Lockwasher, a sculptor and artist who has a knack for taking scrap and turning it into awesome displays - his Flickr photostream is a goldmine for those whose artistic bent leans towards the mechanical. Lockwasher has created not one, not two, but three versions of BeertooD2 for various collectors meetings such as the San Jose Super Toy Show. You can see all three creations below. I'm always fascinated by how deeply entrenched robots have become in our culture.

We've seen R2D2 artwork before, even some home-made models that really work, but there's something different about BeertooD2. Is it his scrappy origins? His body is a 4.7 L keg, his head is a tractor headlamp, his legs are shoe polishers, and his feet are bread loaf pans. That's pretty original...but no, we've noticed even more elaborate robots made out of junk before.

It has to be the beer. If there's one thing I've learned from watching engineers work on robots it's that people can't seem to get enough of them serving alcohol. I mean, who doesn't love a good beerbot? Even Willow Garage taught their $400,000 PR2 to fetch them a cold one. Maybe there's just something about an advanced technology catering to some of our more rudimentary pleasures that appeals so firmly to our psyches. No matter the reason, BeertooD2 is definitely awesome. I can't wait to see what crazy piece of art our robot obsession will inspire next. C3PO as a margarita maker? I can only hope.