The Clock Ship
Teresita
Commonly called The C.S. Tere. A 10,000-pound mobile artwork built from the ground up with a custom frame, hydraulic drivetrain, geared steering and microcontroller-operated “Sails of Fire.”
The vehicle is the artwork.
The Clock Ship Teresita is not an existing vehicle converted into an art car. Andy Tibbetts designed and fabricated the frame and drivetrain specifically for the sculpture, allowing the structure, mechanical systems and visual form to develop as a single machine.
The finished work stands approximately 33 feet tall, 28 feet long and 16 feet wide and weighs about 10,000 pounds. Its propulsion, steering, controls and fire effects were developed specifically for the project. A 10-foot-diameter hubless front wheel is driven by an internal wooden cog, making the steering and drive mechanics a visible part of the sculpture.
Mechanical systems became part of the sculpture.
Purpose-built from frame to controls.
Hydraulic drivetrain
The vehicle was designed around an all-hydraulic drive system rather than adapting the drivetrain of an existing truck or chassis.
Custom geared steering
The steering system uses custom gearing developed for the unusual geometry and scale of the vehicle, including a 10-foot-diameter hubless front wheel driven by an internal wooden cog.
Sails of Fire
A custom microcontroller-based control system operates the “Sails of Fire,” integrating the flame effects into the machine.
A machine that keeps evolving.
The C.S. Tere has remained an active artwork over many years, with continued maintenance, modification and development as the machine returns to Black Rock City.
A project developed over years.
First sketches
The project began on paper as an original mobile sculpture.
Fabrication begins
The first physical components of the Clock Ship were cut and construction began.
First playa drive
The completed machine first drove at Black Rock City.
Continued evolution
The Clock Ship has continued as a long-running artwork and platform for mechanical, control and fabrication development.
Where engineering and art converged.
The Clock Ship brought significant attention to Andy Tibbetts as an artist, designer and fabricator. Artists began approaching him to help develop and fabricate their own work, contributing to the transition from structural engineering into a full-time practice in art and fabrication.
LostMachine Design combines technical development, digital fabrication, hands-on construction and field installation for ambitious physical work.
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