Paul Allen already has a robot section in his vanity sci-fi museumR2D2, posters from Metropolis and The Terminator, Cylon costumes from the first TV run of Battlestar Galactica. (Not sexy, not scary.) Theres even an annoying loop video including Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, and the voice of HAL in 2001 to explain the history of robots dating back to Isaac Asimov and Karel Capek. Whats new, in this show extended through May 3, is the borrowed toy trove, numbering about 130 in all, from noted graphic artist Tom Geismar. The one-room exhibit, Robots: A Designers Collection of Miniature Mechanical Marvels, is exactly that. Everythings under glass, since no boy aged 12-and-under could resist grabbing these toys to play; and there are helpful laminated robot menusrather like choosing at a sushi restaurantto identify the numbered items on display. Behold Srungle, Gundam, Govaria, Mekanda Robo, Gaiking, Mecha Godzilla, and Daikyozin! Life-size or larger, theyd be terrifying. But whats interesting here is the baby boomer devolution of form. Largest and best are the handmade wooden creations of artist David Kirklike knee-high nutcrackers assembled from military surplus parts and old carpentry scraps. Both Popular Mechanics and Forbidden Planet are the influences here. Over the decades, however, robots have become smaller, plastic, and more fungible for tiny fingers. We live in the age of Transformers and Michael Bay. Robots have lost their single-purpose purity. Their prime directive today is to sell across as many platforms as possible. BRIAN MILLER
Dec. 20-May 3, 10 a.m., 2008