Makers Unite: Dublin Maker Celebrates its Fifth Year

Love the spirit of maker culture? Or perhaps you enjoy making in your spare time? Then read on, as we got a sneak peek behind the scenes of this year’s Dublin Maker event.
A community initiative, this year’s Dublin Maker took place in Merrion Square on July 23rd. A ‘show and tell’ experience, families and maker fans who stepped out for the day were delighted with a host of innovative new inventions and craftwork by groups from all around Ireland.

Bringing Makers Together

A popular event, Dublin Maker’s Jeffrey Roe says: “Dublin Maker is a one day celebration of making culture, where we encourage everyone who makes things at home in their sheds or in their local community groups to come together and showcase their work to the public. We really want to encourage people to show off what they’re doing and not to hide it at home!”

Showcasing Innovative Work

With a diverse range of makers from the tech community and further afield part of the line-up of exhibitors on the day, Jeffrey adds: “This is our fifth year participating. It’s a really inclusive event. We have things from the very high-tech such as people 3D printing replacement body limbs – to people doing origami. There is a really great mix of extremely high tech stuff and everything in between. We have traditional skills like wood-turning and craftwork and we have a chance for people to be able to make robotic kits, and to take part in coding classes.”
With maker culture popular throughout different generations, he adds: “We have very young makers who are showcasing work at stands, and then we have more mature makers who are interested in more traditional craft who showcase their work.”

Sharing Knowledge

As a community-focused event, the exhibitors are keen to share their knowledge and ethos – rather than simply sell their products.
Jeffrey explains: “I think the most important thing is to give the public a snapshot of what goes on. People who do it part time are mostly hobbyists and don’t fit into the traditional craft fair because they’re not explicitly selling their wares.”
“We give them the stage to show off their projects and really show off what people are doing.”

Interested in Learning More About Maker Culture?

Check out Dublin Maker’s previous events online. And follow the latest tech meetups in our event section.