Join us on Thursday nights from 5 to 8 pm for an exciting new collaborative project where the community can get involved! Retrofuture Sideshow Alley is a miniature diorama-building project where you can use your skills and The Edge's equipment to design and create a light-up fairground.
Inspired by the Royal Queensland Show, or Ekka as we know it, and sideshow alley, fairgrounds and theme parks and our miniature workshops that we've been running at The Edge, teaching people how to use the laser cutters, 3D printers and more to make miniature creations.
For this community meetup project, we'll help you to work on your own project, or connect you with other users of The Edge to work on a sideshow alley ride or attraction. There are so many fun ideas to get creative with using laser cutting, 3d printing and of course electronics!
We're really keen to activate our electronics bench equipment and resources with this project, so featuring lights and movement in your model will be a fun project for everyone to work on, supporting each other to find solutions.
Participation is free but you will need to undertake a general induction, and you will also need to have done our equipment inductions to use some of the equipment on your own, however during Hack the evening, lab supervisors are happy to guide you and run your projects for you once checked.
What is a 'sideshow alley'?
A sideshow alley is an Australian term that refers to the collection of attractions that often accompany public events, such as agricultural shows or fetes. They are comparable to fairs and carnivals, typically featuring a mix of amusement rides, games, and concession stands.
The concept of the Australian sideshow alley has its roots in the ancient fair traditions of Britain. By the 1880s, these attractions had become a regular feature of agricultural shows in Australia.
Over the past 40 years, Australian sideshows have undergone significant changes. In the 1970s, freak shows, strip shows, and other adult-oriented entertainments were phased out, making way for more family-friendly activities. This shift also saw the introduction of flashy thrill rides and novelties imported from overseas.
What to build?
So, what sort of rides and attractions are we looking for to be built in miniature? We're hoping you can help us brainstorm the ideas during the meetups, but to get us started we got some inspiration from Wikipedia and our memories of the Ekka, and have a list here of some of the most common sideshow alley attractions. Also check out all the wonderful reference material and images from State Library's website and catalogue listed below.
- Ferris Wheel - you can't have a fair without a Ferris Wheel, and think of all the lights you could play with!
- Haunted house - so many possibilities to create jump scares
- Carousel - the merry-go-round kind, can you imagine 3d printed horses??
- Swinging carousel - the ones you sit in and swing around, more lights!!
- Pendulum ride - lots of options for these, like pirate ships, guitars and rainbows
- Dodgem cars - miniature cars, who doesn't love that
- Gravitron - sick bags and all??
- Roller-coasters - plenty to choose from that you can base your designs on
- Laughing clowns - this is a must, one of Australia's favourites
- Striker games - measure the force of a tiny hammer?
Digital is more my jam
Never fear, if you aren't so much into the physical making side of things, we've still got space for you, as we're keen to capture the process of the making at The Edge, along with the creation of a short film using the final model diorama as the set. So we're calling for video creators, audio content makers, animators and anyone with the skills to help contribute in these areas.
Timing
We're kicking this project off from the 15 August and would like to have the models completed to form the larger diorama by Halloween, 31 October, which conveniently falls on a Thursday night.
Hack the evening runs every Thursday evening from 5 pm, the lab staff will be there to assist on this project and provide some materials for use, such as LED lighting. We encourage participants to think about using recycled material where possible, including using material from our offcuts piles.
Theme
Our base theme is retrofuture sideshow alley. Retrofuturism is a creative style that blends past aesthetics with futuristic elements, imagining how the future might have looked from the perspective of the past.
We're after something bright and flashy, combining retro styles with futuristic ideas, exploring the tension between the past and future with a sense of fun and whimsy.
References
There's plenty of past blog posts about the history and other information on the Ekka, read through them here.
Check out some of the inspiration images from the State Library collection below!
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