Past Events at PRS

photos by Liz Vazquez

photos by Dennis Bartok

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PRS Benefit Event: A Private Tour of a Magical Workshop and Clockwork Automaton Collection of John Gaughan by Benjamin Lowder | 10.5.22

photos by Liz Vazquez

Although not generally open to the public due to his busy schedule and the rarity of his apparatus, John Gaughanh generously agreed to open his workshop and collection up for one night only for supporters of PRS, including such treasures as the Mechanical Turk, Antonio Diavolo and the Clarinet Player. For over 60 years Gaughan has designed and constructed magical illusions for masters of the art such as David Copperfield, Criss Angel and David Blaine, who has called him “a magical genius.” He has also pursued a unique and amazing passion for collecting and restoring 18th and 19th century automatons, often spending a decade or more to rebuild their intricate inner workings of gears and pulleys and tubes so they can once again play the clarinet, make a ball disappear and reappear, spread their tail feathers, astonish us over and over. His priceless automatons have been displayed at museums and theatres around the world including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Getty Museum, the Skirball Cultural Center and the Magic Castle.

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photos by Liz Vazquez

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Opening Reception for Perpetual Morphosis, a new solo exhibition by Dustin Wong + floating presents: Music Performance by Wong  & BRIN (Colin Blanton)

photos by Glen Han