At the Mudec, the Charge of the Robots

Would you ever have imagined to find, in Ancient Greece, the ancestors of the modern robot? From the machines of Leonardo to the automatons that enchanted Baroque courts, the idea to create an artificial double has fascinated humans throughout the ages. The Mudec has dedicated an entire exhibition to the great adventures of the robot, a journey that revolves around humanity and its relationship with robots of the past, present and future. Robot. The Human Project is an interdisciplinary exhibition with three principle focuses - techno-scientific, anthropological and artistic which retraces the story of the relationship between humans and their artificial doubles, from the first automatons to cyborgs, from androids to the emotional robots of today, revealing to the public the extraordinary technological advances and the frontiers of robotics and bionics. Accompanied by Alexandrian mathematicians, Arab scientists, the great engineers of the Renaissance and the Baroque up to the androids of the 1700s, visitors will meet the ancestors of humanoid robots in an interactive setting. Among the pieces on display, there is also the Automa of the 1500s by Janello Torriani, the fascinating Demone-Automa of Manfredo Settala with it automated mechanics, extremely advanced for its time and the goldsmith of Diana Cacciatrice. The honoured guest? The latest exemplary robot. Plantoide is the first example in the world of robotics inspired by the plant world. Its artificial roots penetrate the ground and explore, imitating vegetable behaviour. Creating a basis for the development of robotics that can change form and grow like a living organism, it is the cutting edge of “soft robotics”.