Erin Banwell, the founder of Idea Fab Labs Santa Cruz, recently shared with us his vision for a collaborative art and tech space for Santa Cruz creative.

Beth: Tell us a bit about the shared model and your experience from Chico.

Erin: There is a social movement taking place all over the world right now that some people call the "Maker Movement", which is all about people making things and knowledge sharing around the idea of making high tech manufacturing and digital fabrication tools available to everyday people. In addition to online communities, physical communities have been creating collaborative work spaces around the world called maker spaces. In 2012, some friends and I moved a laser cutter, a 3D printer and a pile of hand tools into an old run down warehouse in Chico, CA and a few months later, Idea Fab Labs was born. Idea Fab Labs offers membership access to high tech and traditional tools such as woodshop, laser cutter and engraver, 3D printers, 3D scanning, jewelry zone, electronics zone, and CNC router (robotic cutting/carving machine, capable of making two dimensional or three dimensional cuts) along with a host of other tools and an active community of makers, inventors, artists, engineers, programmers, and entrepreneurs documentation of their body of work. Members pay for one of 3 tiers of access and there is a volunteer membership for those that want to get more involved in the community. Members take "Safety and Basic Use" classes (which are included in the cost of membership) in order to get signed off on tools and give a crash course to newcomers. In addition to tool access, we also host an art gallery that showcases technologically inspired works of arts, and is home to the IFL Digital Fabrication Incubator, part professional development, part residency, part gallery exhibition, the Incubator assists selected artists with the development of techniques and workflows that integrate or augment traditional art forms with digital fabrication and design technology, often resulting in cutting edge works that push the boundaries of what is possible in a given medium. In addition to tools and techniques, the IFL Incubator provides emerging artists with branding, web presence, professional photo documentation of their body of work, and other professional development type training geared to each individuals needs."

Beth: Why did you choose to open Idea Fab Labs in Santa Cruz vs. another City?

Erin: As a Santa Cruz County native, I was aware of the unique mix of artists, techies, craftspeople, and entrepreneurs here. As the Chico Idea Fab Labs blossomed, I recognized that the same model would work in Santa Cruz, and the more I talked about a makerspace in Santa Cruz with friends and acquaintances in the area, the more I heard people saying how needed it was. Initially we looked into a large space at the Tannery Arts Center that was earmarked for “digital media”, but found it had just been rented to a biotech firm. Once we found the our space in the old Wrigley building, now known as University Business Park, a lot of things really fell into place. There is a real community thriving there within the building, with various startups, creative minded businesses and art based offerings, all adding to the ecosystem in a way that is very refreshing. Director, William Ow, is really curating something special with the whole building participating in First Fridays every other month.

Beth: What makes what you offer unique? Why would artists want to join?

Erin: With rental studio prices being more that many artists can afford, a shared space with shared access to tools is the answer. Add in access to cutting edge digital fabrication tools and thriving community of other artists and makers, and it’s easy to see why makerspaces are the wave of the future. It’s like having a membership to a gym but instead of exercising your body on workout equipment, you get to exercise your creative aspirations with the a wide variety of high tech and traditional tools

Beth: What are your plans for expansion in the future?

Erin: We plan on adding a textiles zone with electronic embroidery machine and screen printing, as well as a metal working zone with cnc plasma cutter as the initial digital offering, all coming in 2016. We also plan to expand the physical layout as more members join, with the old Wrigley building able to accommodate our space needs as we grow. Also in 2016, we will begin showcasing techart gallery exhibitions in the Santa Cruz facility, which serves to inspire and inform the work of the community members at IFL, and as a whole, really creates a lot of excitement around the possibilities of digital fabrication and tech based art.

How can people visit you and/or learn more?

We have an open house each Tuesday from 6:30 to 9:30. Come by and take a tour! New Member Orientation is Mondays at 7 pm. Also you can visit our website: santacruz.ideafablabs.com Below are some images from the IFL Incubator and gallery.