Castle In the Sky Robot Sculpture

Hi! If you just stumbled across this or perhaps found the sculpture in person and scanned the QR code then you must have questions. Here are answers to the most FAQ. Why? Because it's cool. Who made it? Darrell Toland. What is it? It's a character from the Hayao Miyazaki film "Castle in the Sky." In the story, this robot is the last of it's kind, left to tend the gardens of a long dead civilization. It's all alone except for a few animals that inhabit the garden. It's a kind of sad and melancholy character. Is it going to stay here? Yes. What's it made out of? It's a fiberglass and styrene shell on a steel and foam frame. The pedestal is 3500 lbs of steel reinforced concrete and was a bugger to pour by hand. Does it have a name? In the film, only "robot" and some fans refer to it as "The Guardian" but we call it "The Gardener" Does it move? Only at night. It walks around the neighborhood, peering into windows and checking to see if children are asleep. If not, it reaches in and grabs them and takes them away. Hahahahahahahah! Just Kidding! Does it have a camera? Smile and act casual. Also has a death ray laser shooting eye. Range untested. Included here on this bloggy thing are photos of the build, some shots of people that have discovered it and stuff they've left behind. Enjoy! If anyone would be interested in commissioning something like this reach out: [email protected]

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[castleintheskyrobot]

Hello from a Ballard neighbor!

I see that your house is now pending- I hope the sale goes smoothly for you.

I wanted to check on what's becoming of the sculpture. We've loved walking by it over the years (and are huge fans of Castle in the Sky). Do the owners want to keep it?

From your Tumblr, it sounded like you were not certain what you would do with it if not. Mainly, I'm hoping the robot continues to have a good home, ideally in Ballard. 😁

Best, Dave

Hi Dave,

Yes it’s staying put. I’ll be making another one when I get settled and will post pics. Sadly it will not be seen by many as it will be in a rather remote area.

[castleintheskyrobot]

My real estate agent found this note and shared it I want to say a huge❤️ goes out to the author and all those that have enjoyed this rather tall bit of art.

[castleintheskyrobot]

It’s bittersweet but I’m selling my house. I don’t know if the future buyers will want to keep the robot or not. If not, I will dismantle it and take it with me. I hope they do embrace it and learn what it has become to mean to the neighborhood. It’s been a rewarding journey that started out as fun weird project. I had no idea just how rewarding it would be. Either way, I’ll construct another on the new future property. See ya in the woods.

[castleintheskyrobot]

08/01/24

It’s been a while since I’ve had anything to post. Some awesome gifts today!

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02/06/2024

It’s been a while since I updated. Lots of treasures!!

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08/12/23

A really nice note left. This kind of stuff lightens my day.

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07/07/23

A book for some light reading this summer,

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07/06/23

A lovely note with haycorns!!

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Spring gift. 04/07/2023

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03/10/23

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Met some very nice fans that left this

08/19/22

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07/06/22

ART!!!

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5/01/2022

What a lovely note

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5/01/2022

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5/1/22

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02/24/22