Yesterday I attended the Maker Faire, an annual event put together by Make and Craft Magazine, the Harvard and Radcliffe of DIY projects for hipster geeks and metal men. It's like an enormous Science Fair for creatives, engineers, inventors, and kids-at-heart. As you may imagine, there are pieces from Burning Man, like the fire-spewing metal sculpture from the Flaming Lotus Girls, and the huge recycled metal sculptures of Man and Woman (by the same artists who did the Mother & Child on the Embarcadero). And, like Burning Man, the festival has gotten more and more popular, doubling in size every year from its original 20,000 attendees 3 years ago. People have figured out that it is the perfect place to let your kids go crazy, whether they are 5 or 55. The best part is, they will learn something, and be inspired to create something of their own.
I arrived late on the last day, which was actually the best time to avoid the traffic. It was melt-down time for some of the younger kids, so cars with tired (but happy) - looking parents were pulling out as I was pulling in. I spent a good 3 hours wandering around the San Mateo Fairgrounds, looking at exhibits, watching demonstrations, and doing my favorite thing of all time, people-watching. Most of it is interactive, so you see people engaged in all sorts of fun activities (Giant Mouse Trap!) - and you can't help but smile.
I was a little bit bugged to see an entire section of the main hall devoted to Disney, since the spirit of the Faire is really not about marketing. But it was done well and the animatronics were interesting, as well as the cute robots that they were debuting. Still, I'd rather see individuals over corporations any day (they do have Disney World to showcase their wares afterall, right?), so I hope that this is not a new trend.
One tip - I got my ticket ($25) for free for subscribing to Make magazine (I already subscribe to Craft). Since each issue runs around $15, the $35 subscription fee for 4 issues is a bargain, and when they throw in a ticket, that seems almost free! (We won't count how much I might spend on supplies for projects in the near future...)
Here are some pics from my uber-fun day at the Faire:
And I leave you with a video of the cool motorized cupcakes - I need one of these!
