Most Popular PlacesRandom PlaceListsItinerariesAdd a PlaceDownload the App Art of Play Thorla-McKee Well ‘Birds of the World in the Skies Over Alcorcón’ Steaming Tender Restaurant Atlas Obscura’s Guide to America’s Most Haunted Cemeteries 4 days ago The Best Haunted Hotels to Book for a Spooky Getaway 13 days ago Is Alton, Illinois America’s Most Haunted Small Town? 17 days ago All the United States New York State Brooklyn Art of Play This Brooklyn curiosity shop has its own magic theater and a singing mechanical bird that sparked an online feud with Kelly Clarkson. Molly, the automaton at the center of a social media firestorm. Sipa USA / The exterior of Art of Play on Atlantic Avenue.
Sipa USA / The store is full of items that can make grown-ups feel like curious kids. Sipa USA / Molly, the automaton at the center of a social media firestorm. Sipa USA / A tiny mechanical bird named Molly has become an unlikely celebrity in Brooklyn.
She sings, she dances, and she recently found herself at the center of a very public feud. Molly lives at Art of Play, a unique curiosity shop on Atlantic Avenue filled with puzzles, games, playing cards, mechanical toys, and objects designed to make grown-ups feel like curious children again. The shop also hosts a 26-seat theater where magicians perform close-up magic.
And the little bird is often part of the show. Created by the Seattle artist Bliss Kolb, Molly is a handcrafted automaton — a mechanical figurine designed to mimic the behavior of a living creature — modeled after an American goldfinch. Turn a crank, and she comes to life, singing and dancing for her audience.
But in October 2026, Molly’s quiet existence took a spectacularly strange turn. After visiting Art of Play, the singer Kelly Clarkson complained to her 8 million followers on X that a store employee had treated her condescendingly when she expressed interest in purchasing the bird. The shop responded on its Instagram feed that Molly was a permanent fixture and wasn't for sale, although a similar piece could be purchased from the artist.
A photograph then circulated on social media showing a $15,000 price tag for Molly, making things more complicated, and the whole disagreement exploded. The shop's owners reported receiving threats and harassment as things escalated. In a particularly theatrical response, Art of Play replaced the bird's price tag with one reading $15 million.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
