< /marked up> DIY coding + robotics for artists, designers, and regular folks: July 17-19 2009

While there are many who would like to create their own software applications and interactive artworks and games, programming – especially creating one’s own software applications – is often perceived as “too hard” to learn. Fortunately, there is a burgeoning movement to expand the computational skills and interests of hundreds of thousands of creative people worldwide, thanks to powerful and widely available open source toolkits.

Within the past few years, new programming and learning tools have emerged from the arts sector, developed by artists for artists, to enable people of all ages and skill levels to learn how to program and create computer software. The purpose of < /marked up> is to introduce participants to these tools and methods of creating interactive art, interactive games, information visualization, or personal software applications.

< /marked up> is for artists, musicians, designers, K-16 students, educators, and others who:

  • Want to create interactive art, information visualization, and/or personal software tools
  • Want to combine art, design, interaction, engineering, robotics, and computer science
  • Want exposure to visually-oriented learning tools
  • Want a more expressive way of teaching programming and computer arts
  • Want to learn how to program their own software, but don’t know where to start!

Event breakdown:

July 17th 7pm – 10pm @ Sandbox Columbus: Reception and experimental showcase featuring the work of video artist Daniel Martinico and interactive media artist Ira Greenberg

July 18th 10am – 5pm @ Sandbox Columbus: Hands-on workshops (see below for workshop details)

July 18th 8pm – 10pm @ Wild Goose Creative: Evolution Control Committee Wheel of Mashup performance

July 19th 1pm – 5pm @ Corkboard: Interactive Game Hack-a-Thon

On July 18th from 10am to 5pm there will be a series of hands-on workshops covering topics such as:

  • A “Hello World” Introduction to Drawing with Code: 10am – 1pm
  • Build Yourself a Minibot: 10am – 5pm
  • Animation and 3D Graphics Using Open Source Tools: 10am – 1pm
  • Coding for Kids and Kids-at-Heart: Learning Scratch from Scratch!: 2pm – 5pm
  • Using Processing Libraries for Audio, Video, and Bots: 2pm – 5pm
  • Noise Toys: Using Freeware and Shareware for Audio Experimentation: 2pm – 5pm

    • Sandbox Columbus doors on Saturday will open 9am, and a free breakfast will be available to registrants. Registrants will also receive a free lunch from 1pm – 2pm.

    Our generous < /marked up> sponsors include: Sandbox Columbus, Madison & Fifth, Assist Data Recovery, Arduino Fun, and Big Kitty Labs.