Toledo Tinkers: The Exhibit
The tangible outcome of the Toledo Tinkers project was the creation of a community narrative exhibit showcasing the diversity of the Toledo community. We placed the work of the youth in our Maker Club program alongside current makers and tinkerers as well as innovators of the past. We did this to demonstrate the creative spirit that helped to shape our community, the current work that keeps it strong, and the vision for the future as seen through the eyes of our young Makers. This message is shared in three glass cabinets that showcase the innovation of Toledo- past, present and future.
In addition, artists Julia LaBay and Yusuf Lateef created the installation that ties the three cabinets together into a cohesive whole. Julia and Yusuf were inspired by the spirit of creativity and innovation in Toledo. They played, tinkered and explored materials and technology, iterating over time and at different scales to create this stunning final piece.
A video was completed to highlight the creation of the installation, and it aims to parallel Julia and Yusuf’s creative process with the work of the youth in Maker Club. The video was directed and produced by Chosen Sound and Media.
The Exhibit
Past
The city of Toledo has a rich history of discovery and innovation. When we think about this legacy, many names come to mind including Stranahan, Ross, Spicer and McMaster. These are all giants in science and technology that radically changed their respective industries. In the cabinets, we featured artifacts and images from several local innovators of the past. Some names will be familiar, and others may not, but all used creativity and problem-solving to make our world a better (and more interesting!) place.
In the cabinets, we featured the contributions of Dr. Allen DeVilbiss and his invention of the atomizer, Edward Drummond Libbey and Michael Owens and their contributions to the glass industry, Sarah Goode and her precursor to the Murphy bed, Alanson Wood and the first roller coaster to receive a patent and Albert Champion and the spark plug. Each of these individuals were innovators in different ways, and revolutionized their fields.
Present
The Toledo community has a vibrant art scene and a strong spirit of innovation. Whether its colorful murals enlivening the downtown landscape or local innovators imagining new ways to work with glass, the creative pulse of our community is strong. The makers and tinkerers featured have challenged the way we think about everyday objects, reimagining them in ways that are fun, innovative and functional.
Local artists Julia LaBay and Yusuf Lateef collaborated on the Toledo Tinkers mural to illuminate the creative spirit of tinkering. Julia is a sculptor, designer, maker and educator who inspires through both her artistic work and her instruction as an art professor. Of this work, Julia shares, “Hopefully this piece gets them inspired to want to learn more, learn how to tinker. Kids are natural tinkerers. They’re natural at playing. We kind of lose that as we get older and become adults. It’s just really an important part of life for discovery, new ideas, concepts and inventions. Those are all made from tinkering. And that’s how this was made.”
Yusuf is a multi-disciplinary artist and educator. Dedicated to public art, he has created more than 20 public art murals. He also co-founded the Toledo Black Artist Coalition. Yusuf states, “Tinkering is at the core of how we interact with the world. To share that space with young people is a high honor. I don’t think there’s anything that’s a higher honor than that.”
Both artists hope that when kids and adults see the piece, they feel motivated to trust their own instincts when it comes to making and tinkering.
Future
Imagination Station supports our community’s future makers. This cabinet highlights images and artifacts from the Maker Clubs delivered during the grant time period. We focused on items that highlighted the aspects of the program that encourage design, fabrication, coding and electronics. We also incorporated iPads into the exhibit, with images from the program. Our goal of all our work around making and tinkering is focused on ‘the process, not the product’ so we didn’t want to place too much emphasis on tangible items, and instead display in images moments of learning that occurred throughout the delivery of the program.
Toledo Tinkers is made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (Grant #MA-245768-OMS-20). Additionally, this work is supported by the Stranahan Foundation, General Motors Corporate Giving, KeyBank Foundation, Columbia Gas/NiSource Charitable Foundation, Toledo Rotary Club Foundation through the Greater Toledo Community Foundation, the Elsie and Harry Baumker Charitable Foundation and the Target Foundation.
