Image Credit: Eoin Carey for Make Works
You may or not know about our work with Make Works. It’s a global library for local manufacturing, connecting people who want to make with people who do. We aim for free and accessible fabrication for artists, designers and makers. It was launched in 2014, in Scotland, in response to frustrations, difficulties and challenges of finding fabricators to make art and design work.
In 2018, Make Works moved its HQ to Fab City Research Lab Barcelona at the Institute of Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) and is now part of the Creative Europe funded Distributed Design (DD) platform which enables the exchange of ideas and as a networking hub for the European maker movement.
Kate Armstrong, Communication and Design Lead, Fab Lab Barcelona:
'Welcoming Paved With Gold to the Distributed Design Platform is as gratifying, as it is strategic. Our association with Kaye and Helen will be further concretized through the implementation and facilitation of Make Works as part of the Distributed Design Platform ecosystem. Together, we aim to expand the impact of Make Works from its Scottish roots, across Europe and beyond with particular attention to opportunities already being developed in Iceland and Hungary. Make Works provides benefits for makers, designers and manufacturers with a particular interest in the platform's potential to empower local communities through capacity building, sustainable economic development and meaningful creative practice.'
In October 2020, Make Works contributed to panel discussions at the FAB City Summit ‘From Emergency to Resilience’: ‘Crafting Fab Cities - an eco-systemic view of tools and methods’ and ‘Platforms - sharing tools, resources and knowledge’. This forum marked the beginning of Make Works’ ambition to start conversations with others to see how it can grow as an “open” global library for local manufacturing where anyone can recommend a manufacturer, or become a representative for their own region via adaptations and in response to local needs, agendas and ecosystems.
As well as following up on enthusiastic enquiries about Make Works at the Summit, during the fourth year of Creative Europe funded DD platform, we are exploring how DD members can embrace Make Works to complement their existing and planned activity to support and have continued conversations about sustainable cities, local manufacturing, clusters of creativity, celebrations of making heritage initiatives amongst others. These include:
Jessica Guy, IAAC, Catalonia, Frosti Gislason, Innovation Center Iceland, David Pap, Fab Lab Budapest, Hungary and Gareth Owen Lloyd + Nat Hunter, Other Today, Brighton.
Existing Make Works regions have continued to do brilliant things during this time, an example being Derby and Derbyshire who are continuing to work with students and support them with film-making and learning about the world of local manufacturing within their wider Museum of Making heritage project.
We are excited to begin conversations with Scottish makers and manufacturers for Make Works again and build on Make Works story so far. In addition to working on local and global activity, a new home for Make Works Scotland will actively be sought so get in touch with Kaye and Helen to start conversations.
And finally, we’re also working on a new interface for Make Works so things will begin to look a little bit different.
Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions. Get in touch at: makeworks@fablabbcn.org
We can’t wait to get chatting!