Sometimes, I’m jealous of people who are good at making things with their hands. I’m clumsy, uncoordinated and could generously be characterised as indoorsy. I’ll likely never be able to take a passion and turn it into a physical object, something to touch and pose with for pictures. But people like Kyle Gilbert can, and we’re luckier for it.
A very tall AT-AT. Photo: Image courtesy of StarWars.com
Kyle, as reported on by StarWars.com, is the creator of an impressive fan creation — a 5.18m-tall replica of an AT-AT Walker (or, at least, half of one), mounted to a wall as a piece of menacing installation art in his church. Made over the course of four weeks out of household materials, the replica is impressively authentic, with a sort of pure simplicity to the colours and design. It reminds me a bit of how AT-ATs look on Star Wars Rebels, actually.
“As people walked into the building, I wanted to do something that felt totally unpredictable and surprising,” he told StarWars.com. “AT-ATs have this huge and menacing feel to them — totally iconic.”
Photo: Courtesy of StarWars.com
“I really had no idea how long it would take or even if we could actually pull it off like I had in my mind,” Gilbert said. “I had this thought that we could make it with a foam exterior and wooden frame, but I wasn’t sure it would actually work. When I mocked it up in Photoshop, I knew I had to try, despite the real potential of failing.”
Fortunately, it worked out, and now we can all marvel at his work, which he did with the help of a small community of other workers.
Maybe one of these days I’ll make a table or something.