Is do-it-yourself culture going mainstream?
Just ask the tens of thousands of people who are expected to cram into the San Mateo County fairgrounds this weekend for the fifth annual Maker Faire Bay Area. They’ll munch on corndogs and funnel cakes, swill $8 plastic cups of beer, and watch as artists, hobbyists and tinkerers show off their creations of steel, electronics, fabric and fire.
Maker Faire — sort of a combination science fair / county fair, with a hefty dose of Burning Man thrown in — has been happening once a year in this suburb on the outskirts of Silicon Valley since 2006. The first Faire drew about 20,000 attendees and 200 exhibits, and both of those figures doubled the following year. Now, with 70,000 attendees expected and exactly 600 exhibits, the Maker Faire is starting to feel a little, well, crowded.
In the past several years it’s expanded to other locations, too. Regional Maker Faires will be held in Detroit July 31 to August 1 of this year and in New York September 25 to 26.
Dale Dougherty, the executive director of Maker Faire and the founder and publisher of Make magazine, says that, far from watering down its DIY ethos, the fair’s growth is a good thing.
“We’re able to reach more people. We’re able to include more diverse styles of making, coming from different communities,” Dougherty says. “I wouldn’t say this is mainstream, but people don’t think of it as quite the oddity it may have been in its first year.”
As the Maker Faire has grown, it has created business opportunities for the do-it-yourselfers who are its core. Burning Man crews like the kid- and crowd-pleasing Electric Giraffe Project show off their creations while selling bumper stickers to help defray their costs. Makers display their electronic creations and sell kits so you can make the same gadgets at home — or sell you the finished product outright. Companies like Rentalic and Sparkfun that cater to do-it-yourselfers hawk their services and kits at the fair.
“If people can make money at Maker Faire by selling their stuff, that’s a great validation of the value of making,” says Mark Frauenfelder, the editor-in-chief of Make magazine.
“It hasn’t become more refined or more commercial,” Frauenfelder says. “It’s always had that kind of homemade — in the best sense of the word — feel.”
But it’s not all buying and selling. Maker Faire is also a chance to connect with other hobbyists, get inspiration about projects you might want to take on, or get advice on the projects you already have underway.
Here’s a taste of what you can see at Maker Faire this year: Do-it-yourself DNA testing, pedal-powered vehicles, flamethrowing robot dragons, an extra-large recreation of the “Mousetrap” game, and lots and lots of LEDs.
Kyle Wiens, CEO of gadget-repair site iFixit, says his company will be there, with about 30 volunteers helping teach people how to fix their gadgets.
“Making and repair are yin and yang,” says Wiens.
Some go because they want their children to see the creative possibilities of making everything from robots and LED toys to sewing projects and crafts.
“I take my daughters because they are interested and find creation fascinating,” says Scott Cleaveland.
And others go just because they enjoy connecting with other makers. For instance, Rick Washburn, a “muffin car” maker who lives in Redwood City, California, says he spent his childhood assembling inventions out of discarded gadgets left out on big trash day.
“The Maker Fair is like a big class reunion of grown-up kids who did the same thing,” says Washburn. “We bring our creations to the Maker Faire so we can show off and enjoy our creations together.”
What to Do at Maker Faire
With more than 600 exhibits and dozens of presentations, performances and events, it’s hard to know what to do at Maker Faire. Check the Maker Faire event schedule for a full rundown, and see below for some highlights of the two-day event.
Expect crowds: Parking lots will fill up early, so take public transit or bike, if you can (the Faire is offering free valet parking for up to 2,000 bicycles).
Here are some highlights you won’t want to miss.
Makerbot Industries will show off its inexpensive 3-D fabrication machine, the Makerbot, at 11:30 and 2:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Mythbusters co-host Adam Savage will be speaking at 2 p.m. on Saturday. He’s a dynamic presenter, and a folk hero to the DIY crowd, so this should be a fun event.
Remember that Diet Coke and Mentos fountain video from a couple of years ago? The guys that created the video, Eepybird, will be recreating their show at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday, and at 4 p.m. Sunday.
Ford is using Maker Faire to announce its latest automotive technology platform and talk about how your gadgets can interface with it. Ford R&D engineering executive K. Venkatesh Prasad will be talking about “Automakers 2.0″ at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Pop band OK Go will give a performance on Sunday evening. The group’s amazing Rube Goldberg video debuted earlier this year, and their show will probably involve some gadgety, DIY surprises from exhibitors at the show.
Wired editor-in-chief Chris Anderson will talk about building autonomous drones at 5 p.m. Saturday and 4:30 p.m. Sunday.
Wired contributor Ken Denmead will be speaking at 3 p.m. Saturday, talking about GeekDads and GeekMoms and “how to bring out the geek in your children.”
Photo: Pip R. Lagenta/Flickr
The Phone Guitar