Meet the Makers – Sarah Conn

Tell us about yourself.
The name’s Sarah and I am a big lover of all things cute and felty. Most people are surprised of my enthusiasm for bats, snakes, and dragons, but dragons are basically snakes with bat wings (or bats with scales and claws), so it’s not that much of a stretch. I’m fond of hand-sewing felt plushes, though I am expanding out into fleece and clothing in the near future.

What are you presenting at Maker Faire Milwaukee?
I am presenting my game, Bats in the Belfry, which basically acts like a beanbag game, only the bean bags are bean BATS. You have to attempt to ring the bell in the wood and plasticore belfry or, alternatively, you must get all five bats in the belfry to win. In addition to my game, I will be showcasing my Les Misérables singing bat collection, featuring 20 bats based on the Les Misérables theater production and book. Some of the bats will sing 10-second chipmunk voiced versions of the musical numbers. Please stop on by!

Why is making important to you?
Making is a way of finding community and friends for me. Without my maker friends egging me on, I definitely would not have the encouragement to make all of the crazy things I’ve made. Sewing is also a very calming exercise for me that grounds me in my very busy and fast-paced life.

What was the first thing you remember making?
My grandma was a big quilter back in the day and I was determined to follow her. So determined, in fact, that I stole into my mother’s sewing cabinet and cut up all her nice, expensive upholstery fabric and an expensive bed sheet to make my jagged quilt pieces. She discovered this fact when I came crying to her when I accidentally sewed my masterpiece through my dress and somehow into my tights. I swear I’ve improved since then.

What have you made that you are most proud of?
The sheer undertaking for my Les Misérables bat project makes me amazed that I’ve stuck with and finished it, but I’d have to say one of my pride and joys is my giant hand-sewn Toothless, from DreamWorks’ How to Train Your Dragon.

Given an unlimited budget, what would you make?
With an unlimited budget and time, I would probably design a bat and dragon army and maybe make some giant metal structures to go with. I’ve got some serious plans for more singing bats (Wicked with Elpha-bat and Batlina/Blinda and the Bat-dom of the Opera spring to mind) as well as other literature and pop culture icons (Elizabeth Benn-bat and Batswilliam Darcy, anyone? Or Steven Bat-iverse?). I’ve been saving up for some dragon and dinosaur patterns, so those could be in the future as well.

Meet the Makers – Frankie Flood

Tell us about yourself.
I am an Associate Professor at UWM that teaches Digital Fabrication and Design in the Department of Art and Design. I run the Digital Craft Research Lab which is a hybrid studio lab space where student can access both analog and digital tools to create objects. These objects can range from art objects that convey specific ideas to functional objects that solve design or engineering problems.

I was trained as a Metalsmith in the tradition of fine craft, but I grew up in a household that was built on DIY ingenuity and thoughtfulness. My father was a factory worker and he would often have personal projects that he would would work on after work or on a weekend day when he wasn’t working. He could fix or make just about anything and that led me to the realization that anything is possible if you have the desire to learn, and the ability to be resourceful. I am sure I became who I am from just absorbing things during my time hanging out with him in the shop. Those same skills and experiences have led me to become a teacher that helps my students solve problems. I hope that their experiences working in my classroom lead them to a fulfilled life where they get to use their skills to make a difference in the lives of others.

What are you presenting at Maker Faire Milwaukee?
I will be presenting my work with Enable, 3D printed hands, machined pizza cutters, tools, and other functional objects, as well as student work from UWM’s Digital Craft Research Lab.

Why is making important to you?
Making is important to me because I believe that the “act of making” is an innate characteristic that embodies what it means to be human. Making is the ultimate way to connect things; making connects the hand and mind, it connects unrelated fields of study to form new solutions, and it connects people. Making is way to connect to others, solve problems, be creative, and communicate ideas through the things we create.

What was the first thing you remember making?
My earliest memories of making are from taking things apart and “fixing” things but I’m sure some of the first things that I built from scratch were related to toys. I used to have a set of “building blocks” that were left over pieces of wood that my Dad had made for me; from “cut-offs” from a building project. I don’t believe there was a single block that was consistent in it’s dimensions, so this allowed for a multitude of configurations to build houses and roads for my Hot Wheels cars or Army Men to travel on or take shelter in. I remember hours of play in creating structures and roads with these wood blocks so my cars could navigate the thick shag carpet of my childhood.

What have you made that you are most proud of?
I am very proud of the design work and 3D printed hands that I have built for local and international children. I am proud of this work because it has connected many people that have been in need with people that are able to help others. It has made making something that is pure in spirit. Rather than looking for monetary gain or personal property or fame (which is sometime the goal of makers) it has opened the door to meeting other people with similar motives when is comes to making and sharing. This is something that I hold dear to my heart.

More than the things that I have made, I am extremely proud of the things that my students have made and accomplished with the skills they have learned in my classroom. There is no greater pride than seeing the success of my students as they find their own individualized way of connecting their passion with their life.

Given an unlimited budget, what would you make?
Given an unlimited budget, I would probably build a workspace that contains all of the latest tools and equipment needed to build almost anything, and I would find a way to make that space available to people that would like to come together to solve problems and work collaboratively. I would also find a way to make it a place of learning for people who are interested in investing in their knowledge and skill. It might look something like Autodesk’s Pier 9 or Digital Craft Research Lab on steroids. Then I would get to work building things and working with people that are just as passionate about making as I am.

Meet the Makers – a bill miller

Tell us about yourself.
I’m an artist that works with digital media in a lot of different capacities. We settled back in SE Wisconsin a few years ago because I now teach at UW Whitwater in Art and Design as well as Media Arts and Game Development. We have two children and live out in the country for the time being. When I’m not in a computer lab, capture studio, or at my desk in front of a machine, I’m either binge watching an old televisions series or out in the yard/woods/field.

What are you presenting at Maker Faire Milwaukee?
I’m going to show a few videos that I made over the last year. The involve some of the work I’ve been doing at Whitewater in our Motion Capture Studio. Normally we use the space to generate motion data for use in student animation and game projects. I have been collecting the bad data – the stuff the students don’t want where the system broke down or recorded something it wasn’t supposed to. I use that noisy motion data to animate things like groups of text characters or cloth simulations. The videos are examples of that and are only available online for purchase with my video ‘album’ “post gridworks” on Undervolt & Co.

I may also be bringing some cut vinyl stickers/decals with me for fun. It’s not officially part of what I’m showing since it’s a really newer thing, but they are pretty fun too so if you see me – make sure to ask for them!

Why is making important to you?
I can’t stop making things. Even if I try to put everything away and take a break, in the back of my mind I’m thinking of things to make. Sometimes those are things like animation, video, websites, but other times it’s things like a rig for my hops to grow up, something I want to cook, or even stickers I want to cut in vinyl. To me, a big part of making is that it gives me the opportunity to share my thoughts or ideas in a way that’s more fun, creative, or direct – than just talking about it.

What was the first thing you remember making?
That’s a tough one and nothing in particular comes to mind. If I dig back deep enough it would probably have to be something like plastic model car kits with my dad. They were always really hard and dad ended up doing most of the work and I could never get the decals to work right and my paint jobs weren’t very good either.

What have you made that you are most proud of?
If you count children, then that’s something I’m really proud of. But if that’s too weird or generic I’m also just proud to be able to have made or built houses. I could go on about both of those things… kids and houses… I met my partner Kate when we both worked at Habitat for Humanity as Americorps members in the Twin Cities area. It was definitely challenging and rewarding to learn construction.

Given an unlimited budget, what would you make?
I have a dream to build a private Imax style projection dome. I know exactly how I’d do it and even have a dome about the right size… but for now the kids are using it to play on and I don’t have all of the pieces to make the projections work with it. But eventually it will be installed in our home somewhere so you can privately view films or whatever with like surround vision. lol

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!

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.