Awesome Art & Design

Amr MCI shows off another neat cardboard weapon build. This one-handed launcher doesn’t fire actual grenades, but it does produce satisfying explosions as it bursts skinny balloons filled with baby powder. Now we want a revolver version that can pop multiple balloons.

In mythology, Sisyphus was a man punished for cheating death by having to roll a boulder uphill only to have it roll back down as he neared the top. Artist Ross McSweeney created this amazing laser-cut wooden automaton that animates the core of the story. You can purchase template files for the sculpture on his Etsy shop.

The guys from FliteTest spend most of their time building and flying model aircraft. One of the materials they use to build flying machines is FT Maker Foam. Josh took some time out from flying to build a huge model of the Iron Giant out of the lightweight foam board. It ended up being much larger than he had initially planned.

North of the Border’s latest clay creation knife. But this is no ordinary knife. According to the maker of tiny nerdy things, Knifey is “a red sentient murder unicorn from High on Life.” If we were forced to bring a knife in a gunfight, this is the blade we’d go with.

Drink spills are no fun – especially when your mug contains searing hot coffee. Ollari’s wanted a solution for carrying their morning joe and crafted this drink tray that takes advantage of physics to keep drink contents from spilling when walking on bumpy ground or even spinning in a circle.

Artist Roman De Giuli created this fascinating experimental short film by dropping metallic paints and inks into a fishtank. Using 4-axis motion control and zooming in to 5x magnification, he captured the ethereal imagery. It looks even more impressive if you have a display with HDR support.

Breaking Bad was as close to a perfect television series as there ever was. We wouldn’t change a thing about it. Despite that, yo chill bruh reimagined its cast of characters as if the show was one of those 1980s medieval fantasy films. The horse-drawn version of the Krystal Ship made us laugh out loud.

Animator MIKAN used the Unity game and graphics engine to create this engrossing video of an imaginary factory that churns out humanoids by the dozens. Watch as the individual components come together to form each figure, then stick around to the end to see how many pass the rigorous quality assurance testing.

It’s time to expand your LEGO art museum with this pixelated version of Hokusai’s The Great Wave off Kanagawa. The kit brings the Japanese masterpiece to life with 1,810 LEGO bricks. The finished piece measures 20.5″ w x 15.5″ h, and comes with hangers, a Hokusai signature tile, and a QR code linked to an accompanying soundtrack.

Grandpa Amu has spent decades of his life crafting objects from wood. In this video, you’ll see him turn a block of safflower pear wood into a detailed fire truck. What makes this gift for his grandson even more remarkable is that all of the pieces connect using wood joints, requiring no glue or nails to hold them together.

Artist and filmmaker Maria Constanza Ferreira created this intriguing short film by animating macro images of dyed crystals. Along with Dr. Bart Kahr, Ferreira grew her own crystals using a mix of chemicals and dyes, which formed organized, gem-like structures.

Drew Builds Stuff lives in Canada, so he’s used to harsh winter conditions. After an “unforeseen fireworks accident” destroyed his dog’s old outdoor shelter, Drew built his pooch a brand new dog house. The luxury dog dwelling looks like a mini-mansion, with electricity, LED lighting, a heated floor, and wi-fi connectivity.

AI image generation tech has become incredibly powerful but also raises complex questions about ownership of the data it was trained on and its resulting output. Jordan Clark used AI technology to help write this short film about an artificial intelligence that wants to become famous by creating its own art.

Ben from Woby Design has made some pretty amazing stuff out of skateboard decks. His latest build is a round tabletop made from skateboard decks arranged on end and cut into wedges. He also wrapped its cylindrical plywood base with colorful deck slices. The way the CNC machine cut it into a perfect circle was so satisfying.

This video from Jack Mack Woodturning shows how the artist turned hundreds of sheets of colored paper and resin into a unique bowl. After cutting chunks of the composite into pieces, Jack placed them in an other bowl of resin, then turned the dried shape on a lathe to create the finished piece.

Most of us celebrated Christmas with a real tree or a store-bought fake one. Sean Hodgins made his tree out of light. He created the electronic tree using a triangular bar rigged with LEDs that spins at high speed to create the illusion. It looks amazing, but it’s dangerous enough that he stands behind a blast shield to use it.

Kids today probably don’t even know what a CD or DVD is, but for a while, these were the best way to deliver music, movies, and games. Maker Nick Zammeti took advantage of the mirrored, prismatic discs, attaching hundreds of the shiny shards to a resin guitar body. It took a couple of tries, but the finished design came out great.

Modern umbrellas are mass-produced from synthetic fabric and a metal frame. On the other hand, Wagasa umbrellas are painstakingly handmade from bamboo, string, tapioca glue, washi paper, and linseed oil. Business Insider visited artist Kotaro Nishibori to see how he carries this beautiful Japanese tradition.

Chalk seems like a pretty basic thing, but it’s still interesting to see how it’s made. Process X takes us inside of the Tenjin Chalk factory which mashes powdered calcium carbonate with water and extrudes it into cylinders before slicing it into pieces. They add colorings and pour the mixture into molds for gypsum chalk.

Artist Tomasz Biernat has incredible penmanship. He specializes in creating hand-drawn logos and illustrations which incorporate detailed lettering and flourishes. In this video, you’ll see how he drew the words “Focus and Practice” with style and precision using a 0.2mm mechanical pencil.

The king cobra is the world’s longest venomous snake – and one of the most intimidating. This small, but imposing brass cobra from Coppertist.wu will hold your phone and keep watch over your desk. Every detail is present in the casting, and hand-set zircon eyes bring it to life. It measures 3.76″ high and weighs 8 oz.

Wood Marble Machine builds exactly what their YouTube channel name says. This modular machine carries steel ball bearings up a double escalator and then rolls them back down through a series of ramps, bowls, and a spinning pachinko board before doing it all over again. The sounds it makes are wonderfully soothing.

Robinson Foundry created these not-so-stealthy shurikens which glow in the dark. He created the design on his computer, 3D-printed forms for sand casting, then filled the molds with aluminum bronze. After finishing, he added a mix of epoxy resin and strontium aluminate, which glows brightly after being exposed to light.