(From left to right) Albert Hwang and Matt Parker of the Lumarca project presented with the Red Bull “Create the Future” award (a MakerBot!) by Eric Siegel, of the NY Hall of Science, and Gareth Branwyn, of MAKE
At this year’s World Maker Faire, Red Bull sponsored a “Create the Future” contest. The idea was to choose one maker at the Faire who offered a compelling glimpse of the future. The prize was a MakerBot CupCake CNC. Just as the MakerBot offers a glimpse into a future of cheap and powerful 3D printing on your desktop, Red Bull and the contest judges went in search of another emerging vision of the future being developed by a maker.
But first, there was a party! The Red Bull Maker Faire Party on Friday night announced the contest and introduced the judges. Held in the astounding Great Hall in the NY Hall of Science, MAKE’s Dale Dougherty kicked off the festivities and ArcAttack! provided the high-voltage entertainment. There were also drinkbots serving up Red Bull-powered cocktails, a marching band, costumed revelers, and lots of happy party goers. Eric Siegel, Director and Chief Content Officer of NY Hall of Science, and I, representing Maker Media, were announced as the judges.
So who won? It was really hard to choose. There were a number of really impressive, stand-out projects. But in the end, Eric and I were in perfect sync as to who the winners should be: Matt Parker and Albert Hwang (along with Elliot Woods) for their amazing Lumarca project. It is a perfect example of something that appears very simple on the surface (it’s mainly constructed of yarn, fishing line, and home store parts), but it has incredible potential to offer affordable 3D visualization capabilities (and it’s just darn cool). Here’s how they describe it on their website:
Lumarca is a truly volumetric display which allows viewers to see three dimensional images and motion. The system requires only a computer, a projector, and common materials found at most hardware stores. This provides an affordable platform for artists to design compelling content that conveys information, narrative, and aesthetic information in a new way.
Matt, Albert, and company are looking for investment money via Kickstarter to take their project to the next level. Hopefully, the exposure from this contest will help.
Good luck, guys. And congrats on winning Red Bull’s “Create the Future” contest!
More pictures of the Red Bull Create the Future Party after the jump…
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