Meet the Makers – Robert Burns
Tell us about yourself.
I’m an artist and explorer living in Milwaukee, WI. Most of my exploring takes place underground where I shoot photos for undermke.com
What are you presenting at Maker Faire Milwaukee?
This is my first Maker Faire and I’m showing a device called a “Pixelator” in the Dark Arts area that is all about animated grid of light. It’s very compelling to watch. Also, I will be showing a series of brand new Mad Max Lego projects that I’m really happy with.
Why is making important to you?
Making has always been at the center of my world. It’s hard to picture myself not being in the middle of a bunch of builds. The process of planning and problem solving is what I’m all about.
What was the first thing you remember making?
In the fifth grade I created a very very dangerous lighted bookmark with no supervision. The thing plugged into the wall, yikes!
What have you made that you are most proud of?
A piece of art called Have Goals.
Given an unlimited budget, what would you make?
Unlimited? I would endeavor to make things better for everyone, somehow. Let’s work out the details on the way!
Meet the Makers – Henri Verhoeven
Tell us about yourself.
My name is Henri, I like the colors red and green. I like to play with my porcupine finger puppet. I really like Indiana Jones, I like the movies, I like the LEGO video games, and like like pretending I am Indiana Jones. I like to swim. I have 3 sisters and I really like driving them crazy.
What are you presenting at Maker Faire Milwaukee?
My robot, the coolest thing on the robot is the rocket launcher. It was hard to make, but fun too.
Why is making important to you?
Because it’s fun.
What was the first thing you remember making?
LEGOs with lights on them. I would plug the little lights onto a box that my dad made. We put the lights in a LEGO brick. The police one flashed red and blue with a siren, and the construction light just flashed without a siren.
What have you made that you are most proud of?
Definitely my robot, because it got into Maker Faire.
Given an unlimited budget, what would you make?
I would set up my own chemistry laboratory and make experiments that bubble and explode. Maybe I would make a rocket, that sounds pretty cool too.
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Check out some of Henri’s making adventures at makersmonday.wordpress.com
Meet the Makers – Thomas Zovar
Tell us about yourself.
I consider myself to be a creative person, or that’s what people tell me. It is true that you are becoming what people believe you are to be! I am always thinking of new ideas and products to develop. Thinking about products and having an idea is one thing. Putting it into a logical step forward to produce that product or idea is quite another. Since I have purchased my 3D printer in October of 2013 I have had so much fun creating my products at home. I have been a mechanical designer for over 15 years with 3D modeling for another 10 years. I use Solidworks for most of all my product designs.
What are you presenting at Maker Faire Milwaukee?
I will be displaying my new Plant & Garden Shield that I developed about 2 years ago. This plant & garden shield keeps chipmunks from digging in your pots and in your gardens and at the same time fertilizes the plant. Also I have a new Mosaic Butterfly Tessellation Mold to create walkways, stepping stones & patios! I will have a variety of other fun products to play with and enjoy! (Check out the Fox6 story!)
Why is making important to you?
Making is important to me because I feel more complete as a person when I can develop and introduce new products to the public! I have this drive that is unstoppable!
What was the first thing you remember making?
One of the first things I remember making was a complete chess set out of scraps of wood cutouts that I found in a dumpster.
What have you made that you are most proud of?
The Plant and Garden Shield is probably the most proud invention that I currently have and developed. I am selling them at 4 locations in the Milwaukee area.
Given an unlimited budget, what would you make?
If I had an unlimited budget I would develop at least 5 products that are so unique that I can not even mention them except in writing with a disclosure agreement. One of those products would be a game that would be as big if not bigger than the Rubik’s Cube!
Don’t like waiting? Pre-register!
As you probably know, Maker Faire Milwaukee is a FREE event. That’s right, thanks to our sponsors the ticket price to awesome is zero.
When you get to Maker Faire, there will be two lines; one for people who have not registered, and those who have pre-registered. Yes, you can pre-register for Maker Faire Milwaukee!
Save yourself (and our volunteers) some time, and head on over to Eventbrite to pre-register.
Meet the Makers – Bryan Cera
Tell us about yourself.
I grew up here, in Milwaukee, and was always interested in art – particularly animation – and in the early 2000s the increasing accessibility of animation software was what really got me interested in technology early on. From there, I began to explore the world of programming – I started making a lot of weird generative animations and interactive video installations. It was when I realized that I could use that same programming knowledge to animate robots and interface with machines that I fell deeply in love with making physical objects. I went to grad school at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and studied Art and Technology for three years. That is where I created works like Glove One – a functional 3D-printed cell phone that you wear on your hand, or ARAI (Arm Robot for Artistic Inquiry) – an industrial style robot who’s soul purpose is to procrastinate. And during my graduate studies I also fell in love with teaching. I am now Assistant Professor in Digital Media at Cardinal Stritch University – and I teach in subjects ranging from digital illustration, animation and video production, to computer programming, creative coding and digital fabrication.
What are you presenting at Maker Faire Milwaukee?
I am presenting a gigantic retro video game controller I am tentatively calling Entertainment System – where it will take a whole team of people to operate single “player” in a classic video game. This is a prototype for a larger (and more expensive!) project – and I thought what better testing grounds for the proof-of-concept than Maker Faire Milwaukee!
Why is making important to you?
My life and practice both reflect a process of learning, making, sharing and teaching. I think this process is one that, if adopted by many people, has potential to inspire youth, to make meaningful and innovative changes to the way we see the world, and to empower entire communities to take charge of the technologies that surround us.
What was the first thing you remember making?
In forth grade my entire class – along with our teachers – collaborated on building a giant inflatable sperm whale using only garbage bags and tape. It was kept inflated with an industrial blower, and was large enough that a whole classroom of kids could crawl inside (through its mouth). This project stands out to me because it is obvious now how huge an impact some of my teachers have had on me. Like many others, I am an experiential learner – we don’t retain information from completing problem sets or cramming for exams. It is the hands-on experience that informs us. I am a firm believer that making is a mode of thinking, and I am grateful to this day that my forth grade teacher truly challenged me to think.
What have you made that you are most proud of?
This summer I built a new lab at my University which I am calling The Atelier – this is a fancy french word that basically means Maker’s Studio. It is stocked with all kinds of hand tools, power tools, homebrew 3D printers and CNC machines, and lots of hardware and raw materials for making just about anything you can come up with. At the moment I am most proud of – and excited about – The Atelier and the potential impact it will have on my students at Cardinal Stritch University.
Given an unlimited budget, what would you make?
I am really fascinated by the idea of tiny, modular robots that can cooperate to complete complex tasks. With an unlimited budget I would build a swarm of programmable robots and program them to make art.
Attending? Need a place to stay?
If your planning to attend Maker Faire Milwaukee, you’ve probably already seen our Attend page, which is full of great info about the where, the when, and the parking, but we’ve also got information on accommodations, if you need a place to stay.
There is an on-site Dorm/Hostel at State Fair Park. It’s the closest option for staying near Maker Faire. There’s also a list of nearby hotels, and if you like to travel with your own accommodations, check out the RV parking info.
If none of those work for you, there’s always AirBNB and Couchsurfing.com!
It’s almost time…
We’ve already told you about the GIANT CLOCK you’ll see at Maker Faire, and since we’re just a few weeks out, we thought you might like an update.
Tom Gralewicz at Milwaukee Makerspace has been leading the efforts, and putting time in every day to get this clock up and running for Maker Faire. The pneumatic nail gun makes putting nails in place quick and easy!
The small gears were all laser cut using one of the laser cutters at Milwaukee Makerspace. (Yes, they have more than one laser cutter!)
The gears are driven by these motors mounted inside wooden frames.
The smaller acrylic gears drive these larger wooden gears, which move the cubes.
The large gears were cut from 4×8 sheets of plywood using the (recently completed) 4×8 CNC Router at Milwaukee Makerspace. Here’s some of the 4×8 sheets showing where the parts were cut from.
With the large gears and strong motors, the clock is powerful and (slightly) dangerous! Warnings were needed…
More wood…
And more wood…
Of course there’s an Arduino to help control everything…
Tom is 6’3″, and the clock will be about 8 feet tall by 16 feet wide.
The next two weeks are going to be a bit hectic, but the GIANT CLOCK should be up and running (and telling time) before 9am on Saturday, September 26th, 2015 when Maker Faire Milwaukee officially opens!
Ben Nelson will “Loop the Lake”
Milwaukee Makerspace member Ben Nelson is a huge advocate of electric vehicles and renewable energy, and he loves sharing his adventures with the world. You may have seen his DIY electric motorcycle at Maker Faire Milwaukee last year.
Ben will be back again this year, but starting this week he’ll be embarking on a “DIY Road Rally” where he will be traveling 1,000 miles, circumnavigating Lake Michigan, without using a single drop of gasoline. Luckily, he’ll be back in time for Maker Faire with photos and video footage from his trip, which he hopes to turn into a full documentary film.
You can find out more about the project on his web site, and you can also follow the journey on Facebook. Ben’s blog is also filled with maker-related topics ranging from building an ice scooter, to home solar projects, to sand blasting pie plates.
We’re Challenging You!
Calling all MacGyver fans! Register yourself or a full team of four members for the GE Design & Build Challenge, to be held Saturday, September 26 from noon to 4 pm. The challenge will be announced at noon and teams will receive three hours, tools and access to a hack rack (read: junk pile) to come up with their competition entry. Then, it’s off to the Challenge course for a must-see competition that will decide the winning team. In addition to fifteen minutes of fame and fun, winning team members will each receive a $100 Visa gift card, a subscription to MAKE: Magazine, Maker Faire Milwaukee T-shirts, other swag, and a custom-made GE Design & Build Challenge team trophy.
(MacGyver made a heart defibrillator out of candle sticks – just sayin’!)
Meet the Maker… Spaces!
Makerspaces (sometimes called “Hackerspaces”) are collaborative workshops where individuals can come together to share knowledge, skills, ideas, and equipment. Typically these spaces are in larger cities, and consist of volunteers who run things on a day-to-day basis. Members may have interests as diverse as wood working, electronics, crafting, forging, art, digital fabrication, and on and on. Often you’ll find traditional tools like tables saws and sewing machines along side 3D printers and CNC routers.
Here’s a quick look at a few of the makerspaces that you’ll meet Maker Faire Milwaukee
Milwaukee Makerspace started with about a dozen makers who would meet once a week at the local Culvers and talk about robotics and electric vehicles. They moved into their first space in Bay View with just a dozen members back in 2010. Since then they’ve grown to nearly 200 members and a 16,000 square foot facility with multiple 3D printers, laser cutters, and members working at all times of the day and night on various group and personal projects. (Milwaukee Makerspace is also the co-host of Maker Faire Milwaukee!)
Up in the Fox Valley is Appleton Makerspace, which started with a group known as DHMN (“Distributed Hacker/Maker Network”) and eventually secured a space and is now known as Appleton Makerspace. The space has a small but active group of members working on projects such as a “Ham Shack” for Ham radio activities, a paintball sentry gun, CandyBot, a “wookie box”, and there’s even one member building an airplane!
Originally known as “MadCity Makers”, the members of The Bodgery (often called “Bodgers”) recently moved into a new space in Madison, Wisconsin. The new building is bigger and better than before, and continues to gain new equipment, and attract new members. (One of their bigger projects is the Madison Drone Racing League!) Like most spaces, they have “open nights” where the public can come in and find out more about what the space is, and what the members do. Stop in any Friday at 7pm to find out more.
As we’ve mentioned before, Pumping Station: One will be on-hand to help you make a “PS: One Noisemaker”, which is an optical theremin that requires no soldering. We’re also please to welcome PS:1 as our “out of state” makerspace. Pumping Station: One is located in Chicago, Illinois and has hundreds of members with hundreds of projects, including things like the “Dumb Robot Competition”. (PS:1 is also where The Power Racing Series originated.)
If you’re wondering if there is a makerspace in your town, check out wiki.hackerspaces.org which features a user-maintained list of all active hackerspaces throughout the world.