By Sarah Rodriguez, Times-Herald, Vallejo, Calif. The Tribune Content Agency
The annual wonderland where art and science collide once again made its mark on Mare Island, celebrating innovation and bringing together curious creators of all ages.
Saturday's Maker Faire, complete with eye-catching LED sculptures, battling robots, and a Mission Impossible-like laser maze, attracted attendees from far and wide.
With smiles stretched across their face, longtime fans Aldo Raicich and Jeff Johnson were eager to see the electronic displays.
"We are nerds and we love the Maker Faire," laughed Raicich. "Just seeing people create stuff, it is really cool," echoed Johnson.
The grounds were packed with DIY-ers of all ages, from wonderstruck little ones to retired Ph.D. engineers.
Recently retired Michael Regalbuto was thrilled to once again showcase his fully interactive life-size figurines, or "posables." Alongside his friend, Bob Brown, the former Ph.D engineers started the project by creating posable Halloween displays.
The idea, with their combined biomechanics experience, evolved from bare sticks and bolts to the full-blown interactive display it is today.
"As we always say," said Regalbuto, "one figure makes a statement but two figures can tell a story" and by repositioning them, "we can use all of them to evoke emotion."
For years the two have been a fan favorite at Maker Faire. Each year they try to refine the figures - adding different colors, sizes, and functions.
Another classic? The whimsical cupcake and muffin-mobiles. Combining mechanical engineering with the appearance of the tasty pastry, the Acme Muffineering group has been a Maker Faire staple.
The group said the battery-powered cars, built from repurposed "ingredients," are "delicious, mentally nutritious, highly maneuverable, and built from scratch."
One attendee, Danielle Martin from Redwood City, has made a 10-year-long attempt to ride in one of the iconic muffin mobiles. Every year, "I was just asking the wrong question. I would say 'Can I get in?' and they thought I wanted to drive it so they said no," Martin joked.
Finally, after multiple attempts and many years, she got it right. The longtime attendee finally got her wish - a picture-perfect moment grinning from the driver's seat of the mechanical muffin.
The Maker Faire "dark room" is also a sight to behold. The room, wall-to-wall with elaborate LED displays, sculptures, and immersive exhibits is truly a breathtaking experience.
Perhaps most notable is the 18-by-9 foot illuminated Penrose Tile Wall. This first-time exhibit is comprised of 900 Penrose Tiles - a tiling system designed by Sir Roger Penrose in the 1970s.
Because of its unique shape and random color display, the ever-changing exhibit never quite repeats itself.
Its creator, Chuck Sommerville, is an LED artist with a background in video game development. After a career designing high-profile pieces for people, he eventually realized that he could split off and work as an independent artist.
Inspired by Penrose's tiling system, the wall is made up of two different diamond-shaped tiles. Following the mathematician's placement rules, their shape allows them to fill an infinite plane yet not repeat - truly an astounding mathematical feat.
"The animations are generated in real time, through math functions that have a set of parameters," said Sommerville. Because the process is based on random numbers, "each time you see the animations, it will look a little different than it did last time - it doesn't really repeat," he said.
The captivating display is just one of the exhibits that merge stunning art with mind-blowing science. The last day to catch the Maker Faire is Sunday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.