Alan Rath on sculptural soul infusion:
MT: The pieces are very playful, but they're also meticulously hand crafted.
You custom design all your circuits and hand solder the connections.
Why go to that trouble?

AR: Often there's not a single optimal solution, so things like the
selection of an electronic part are open to interpretation. I'm picking
components based on what they look like. To me, transformers can
be attractive or ugly. The pieces are made in a certain meditative state.
A lot of emotion goes into the building, and I hope they somehow contain
that. You know, the Mars lander is a beautiful piece of sculpture. The people
who built it identified with it, so it has a lot of soul. I want power from art at
that level of commitment and mastery.