Dome building can be fun and educational. Find out more at the Mini-Maker Faire this coming Saturday.

By Cathleen Twardzik

On October 13 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., Mini-Maker Faire, which is a Somerville Arts Council and Artisan’s Asylum event, will occur in Union Square.

Greater than twenty organizations will have booths at the event, and they will involve family fun and kid-friendly activities, such as mini-bowling machines, robot snakes and workshops about stop-motion animation. Booths will also include small insect robots from ArcBotics and Mineways 3D-printed Minecraft objects.

Artisan’s Asylum found that a Maker Faire in the Somerville vicinity existed. Therefore, the organization resolved to commence such an event in the city “in conjunction with” ArtsUnion and the Somerville Arts Council.

Robot fans are welcome.

“The purpose of this event is to celebrate the DIY culture that‘s rampant throughout Somerville, and the surrounding area [to] give the public a chance to see some of the amazing projects that are being produced, here, on a regular basis. We hope to inspire the residents of Somerville to get involved their own DIY projects,” said Gui Cavalcanti, Co-Founder and President of Artisan’s Asylum, which is the organization that is sponsoring Maker Faire Somerville.

“There will be several educational workshops at the event. We’ll be building geodesic domes, making stop-motion animations, and creating mosaics, to name a few. We’ll be in the Union Square parking lot, which is surrounded by several restaurants, but we don’t have a lineup available of food vendors at this time,” said Cavalcanti.

At the event, look for Sparkfun Electronics, an organization which will show community members “how to solder and assemble electronics kits,” according to Cavalcanti.

The Collaborative Electronics Media Institute (CEMI), which is an electronic music platform, will also attend. Event participants will discover how “to make electronic music together, regardless of skill level.”

“Arcbotics will be present, showing off low-cost educational robotics kits that are being developed here in Somerville,” said Cavalcanti.

In 2006, Make Magazine created Maker Faire to be “a celebration of the spirit of do-it-yourself (DIY) innovation in America. It typically showcases new technology, home-built arts-and-crafts products [and] startup manufacturing-based businesses,” he said.
Artisan’s Asylum, which is a community craft workshop, which makes manufacturing equipment via studio rentals, memberships and classes available to the public. The organization’s building possesses greater than 140 rental studios, all of which are utilized by many artists.

In the future, the event may include additional “exhibitors and show off as many DIY projects made in or around Somerville as possible,” said Cavalcanti.