Maker Faire is always a magical fountain of inspiration. Every one I go to, I come home with a list of things I want to build, and dreams of projects much bigger than my skillset can provide. Part of that is because the team puts so much effort into collecting and displaying pieces that really inspire awe.
Check out a few of the awesome pieces that are coming to the Bay Area Maker Faire this year. (Get your tickets ASAP, they’re selling quick!)
Mermaid Glimmer’s Jellyfish Grotto
Erin St. Blaine’s Jellyfish Grotto looks incredibly stunning. I just want to lay on the floor and stare at these glowing, dangly, jellyfish sculptures all day long.
50 iridescent jellyfish hang silently over the heads of viewers. During the daytime the sunlight filters through the rainbow jellies, creating a beautiful play of light and shadow on the ground. At night, the jellies are illuminated with animated lights, connected and controlled via a wifi network. The swarm appears to come alive as lights play through the jellyfish with a beautiful array of colors and patterns. The jellies whisper, shout, giggle, and glow through light animations, delighting the viewers who walk underneath.
Trashlantis
Trashlantis is a kinetic sculpture, a driveable piece of art with a message. It’s a moving discussion of what is happening to our oceans.
Trashlantis is a mobile performance & kinetic sculpture, a backdrop for deep, meaningful conversations with people about the myth of recycling and the hazards of living in a “plastisphere.” We won this year’s Kinetic Grand Championship in Humboldt Country, California.
Trashlantis tells a story ripped from today’s headlines: plastic is creating brand-new ecosystems in the oceans. Trashlanteans are strange half-human, half-fish and half-trash beings from an ancient oceanic civilization. They comb the beaches and byways, sidewalks and highways for more plastic to build a Trashlantean civilization. They offer humans a chance to explore their relationship to this amazing material– and maybe even provide a splash of hope to those who are already working towards a toxin and trash free future.
Project EMPIRE
Inspired by 50’s science fiction – as well as tree hopping insects- project EMPIRE is a sight to behold!
Inspired by the heyday of science fiction concept art, the cryptic history of a canceled NASA mission, and the optimism and hipness of the early 60’s Apollo Rocket Age, Project: EMPIRE (Early Manned Planetary-Interplanetary Roundtrip Expeditions) is the physical creation of a mythological spacecraft and a new anachronistic style we call AEROSPACEPUNK.
Sepia Lux
Undulating and glowing and thirty six feet long, Sepia Lux is a driving squidmobile that will live in your dreams forever.
Sepia Lux and is the creation of a number of artists and was build in Santa Rosa CA. It is a 36’ long, 15’ wide animatronic, inflatable cuttlefish. The balloon portion of the project was designed and made by Bill Kennedy (Inflatabill)The lighting design, programming and integration was done by Brian Willison. Mechanics, robotics, electronics were done by Loren Crotty of Santa Rosa. Contributions were made by over a dozen other individuals over the course of its build. The car is powered with 2 lithium battery banks with onboard generator power as well. There are multiple moving systems including 4 cam driven fin arrays and 9 linear actuators control head tentacles using Arduino +switches. Thousands of LEDs are controlled via computer, and 2 hemispherical LED monitors serve as eyeballs.
Large Inflatable Kites
These massive floating pieces are difficult to envision until you are there, gazing up at their weightless wonder. They’re inflatable kites and they’ll brighten anyone’s day.
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