Makers are natural disruptors – modifying processes, developing tools and finding solutions to practical problems through the act of making. But how are we doing this in the 21st century? When makers identify a gap or opportunity what new solutions emerge?
We are delighted to welcome Triambak Saxena from Kniterate and Joseph Halligan from Assemble to Birmingham to talk through their work, and experiences, as makers making tools for makers. This event is the first in a series of monthly events programmed with Maker Assembly which explore a range of themes that take making in new directions.
About our Speakers
Triambak Saxena is Kniterate’s Co-Founder & COO.
Kniterate is democratizing clothing manufacturing with an automated digital knitting machine and by simplifying the process of designing and making knitwear. By shrinking industrial knitting machines into an affordable fabrication tool, anyone can now turn digital designs into knitted garments. The technology allows designers in workshops and makerspaces to produce one-off designs, scale up production and innovate through materials research and development.
Kniterate is the brainchild of maker Gerard Rubio, who started this adventure with OpenKnit. The team welcomes anyone to play with Kniterate in its space in Makerversity, London.
Joseph Halligan is one of the founding members of Assemble, a collective based in London who have worked across the fields of art, architecture and design since 2010.
Joseph led on Assemble’s work in Liverpool, which included the wider strategic planning of the Granby Four Streets area. This work led on to the creation of Granby Workshop, a social enterprise employing local residents in the production of architectural ceramics and the Granby Winter Garden, an Arts Council England funded conversion of two derelict houses in to an arts residency and community space.
In 2015 Assemble were awarded the Turner Prize for their work on the project, the first time the award has been won by a collective.
Alongside his work in Liverpool, Joseph is currently working on an open access workshop at Churchill College, Cambridge.
Maker Assembly aim to make a home for critical discussion about maker culture: its meaning, politics, history and future.
*What do we mean by “making”?
We’re talking about people who craft, design, manufacture, tinker with, engineer, fabricate, and repair physical things. Art, craft, electronics, textiles, products, robots. Hi-tech and low-tech, amateur and professional, young and old, with digital tools or by hand. Historical perspectives, what’s happening here and now, and how things might change in the future. We aim to be diverse and inclusive. If what you make, or how you see yourself, is a little bit on the fringes, you’re doubly welcome.
Maker Assembly are supported by the Comino Foundation
