Step back in time with me, and behold the program guide to the first-ever Maker Faire. I was there, way back in the year 2006, demonstrating clay animation with my museum colleagues. I cherished this guide, but it went missing a few years ago. I’m so glad to have found a digital version of it, one that I can share with you here!
It’s amazing to me how much the event has changed in the past decade, and yet this program guide seems like it could be used as a template for any Maker Faire around the world, even our flagship Faires. Some of the people have changed, but the core of creativity, whimsy, brilliance, and technological flair are all there from Day One through today.
To see how little the fundamentals of Maker Faire have shifted in these ten events, just read Dale’s introduction, below. Our team still operates on the edge of this exuberant joy and humble gratitude.
Welcome to the first-ever Maker Faire, a full weekend celebration of DIY creativity and the people who make all kinds of interesting things.
Maker Faire has elements of a science fair, a craft fair, and a county fair, with a bit of Burning Man as well. I know you’re going to enjoy it.
Maker Faire is a chance to learn how to do something yourself or discover a new hobby. It’s an opportunity to explore your world and the world around you in new ways. Moreover, it’s a way to have fun and do something that’s satisfying for yourself and even more rewarding when shared with others.
Maker Faire is an outgrowth of Make: magazine, a year-old DIY technology quarterly. Make: features all kinds of cool projects and ideas for transforming technology into something you want it to be. Please visit our website, www.makezine.com, to learn more about Make: and to read the Make: blog, edited by Phillip Torrone and Natalie Zee. I’d like to thank the program committee who helped organize the program of events: Paul Spinrad, Goli Mohammadi, Arwen O’Reilly, Sherry Huss, Natalie Zee, Phillip Torrone, Terrie Miller, David Pescovitz, all of whom are part of the Make: team. Thanks also to Tom Atwood of Robot magazine, who helped bring in the robotics exhibits.
I’d like to thank the sponsors and exhibitors, along with our media sponsors for participating in Maker Faire. We have also had the good fortune to link up with many local clubs, user groups, and nonprofit organizations. I’d like to thank Wendy Tremayne for organizing Swap-O-Rama-Rama and Leah Kramer for bringing Bazaar Bizarre to Maker Faire. Thanks also to Louise Glasgow, Sherry Huss, Dan Woods, Katie Dougherty, Gerry Arrington, and Shawn Connally who did all the work behind-the-scenes to make this large, complex event happen. And a big thank you to our interns, Adrienne Foreman, Maria Mandrussow, Jake McKenzie, and Ty Nowotny. If you see Crew members at Maker Faire, please let them know if there’s anything they can do to help you enjoy the event, and you might thank them yourself for the work they’ve done.
Finally, I’d like to especially thank the incredible group of Makers who are exhibiting or giving workshops and presentations at Maker Faire. Most of them are from the Bay Area and you just might find out that some of your neighbors and friends are Makers. Ultimately, we hope that Maker Faire inspires you to make your own kind of fun and become a Maker yourself.
Dale Dougherty
Editor & Publisher, Make:
O’Reilly Media, Inc.
Did the crew know when they launched this event that it would grow to well over 100 events and over half a million attendees annually? Perhaps not, but anyone who was there could tell you that we had a hunch. I can still feel the tingly thrill I got when I saw the giant Trampoline Simon game (using the bouncy surfaces as the red, yellow, blue, and green buttons). I knew then that I wanted this Maker Faire thing, as far-fetched and wonderful as it was, to succeed so much, and that I needed to be a part of making Maker Faire be something even bigger, something to inspire kids everywhere and anywhere. Nearly a decade later, I am still so grateful that I have been able to play some small part in that.
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