PARTS

CRAFTS

Handcrafting Conductive Materials

Thesis Workshop 1

Saturday 26th March 2011, 11-6pm

This workshop is open to anybody interested in learning more about the Kit-of-No-Parts approach to building electronics.

– location: High-Low Tech research group, MIT Media Lab, Cambridge/MA
– no prior experience with craft or electronics necessary
– no fee, materials and tools provided
– max. 10 participants, email me to reserve a spot: plusea@mit.edu

Description

Have you ever wondered what kinds of electronics we would be using if we had crafted them ourselves? What kind of interface would you have built to interact with your music? What would your alarm clock look like? How would your doorbell feel? What shapes, sizes, colors, textures and functionality would a craft approach to building electronics offer?

The Kit-of-No-Parts workshop introduces participants to a craft approach to building electronics. Imagine you could sculpt a switch, carve a circuit or plate your own speakers. This workshop will cover a range of traditional and contemporary craft techniques including gilding, carving, casting, sculpting and plating, and demonstrate how a variety of craft materials can be formed into functioning electronic artifacts.

Craft as an expressive building processes requires an understanding of the materials and tools involved as well as skill in working them into the desired results. The results of this process are unique, diverse and personalized artifacts that merge materiality with functionality to allow for new understanding, aesthetics and interactions.

Participant Creations

Downloads

PowerPoint Presentation >> http://web.media.mit.edu/~plusea/downloads/present/KoNP-Workshop1-Present.pptx.zip
Workshop Poster PDF >> http://web.media.mit.edu/~plusea/downloads/print/workshop-posters.pdf
Greeting card circuit – sound amplification IMG >> http://www.flickr.com/photos/plusea/5564923104/sizes/o/in/photostream/

Links

Photos on Flickr >> http://www.flickr.com/photos/plusea/sets/72157626234311399/

Schedule

Participants will be introduced to a range of materials, tools and techniques that can be used to craft electronics. After a short presentation and introductory activity, participants will proceed to build a small electronic artifact of their own.

Morning 11-1pm
– Introductions
– Presentation
– Build a speaker coil

Lunch 1-2pm

Afternoon 2-6pm
– Brainstorm ideas
– Sketch a design
– Build

5:30pm Show and tell

Greeting card circuit – sound amplification

Poster