Creator Spotlight
Art of the Fold: Artist uses Makerplace to take creations to a whole new scale
Every week new creations unfold at the Makerplace that showcase just how inventive the Arlington Heights community can be. From laser etching a glass to knitting a quilt, the Makerplace allows for endless possibilities, and for one local artist, using the Makerplace helped take his artwork to a whole new scale.
Raymond "RK" Liu is a graphic designer and artist whose passion for origami began as a child and evolved over time.
“It’s probably the earliest memory I have with my mother teaching me anything,” Liu said. "I was so obsessed with folding origami...every single night I would go on YouTube, look up a tutorial for something new to make and make it.”
Liu graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a degree in graphic design and in addition to pursuing graphic design work, he also creates modular origami art pieces, which he describes as a style that uses many sheets of paper.
“Maybe it’s six, maybe it’s 12, maybe it’s 30...you’re using different pieces and usually you’re making the same type of module, and you connect them together to make a bigger structure.”
In recent months, Liu has worked on creating larger art pieces. He began using the Makerplace in June 2024 after learning about its Dremel LC40 and Epilog Fusion Edge 24 laser cutters.
From the Makerplace to the Junior Olympics
“Let the games begin” was on everyone’s mind this past summer as the Summer Olympics took place in Paris, France. For one local fencing coach, the games got their start early at the library’s Makerplace.
Arlington Heights resident R. Grant Carlton is the foil coach for Thundercats Fencing, a combined high school fencing team made up of students from the Libertyville and Vernon Hills high schools. In February 2024, two students from Carlton’s team qualified for the 2024 Junior Olympics and Parafencing North American Cup in Charlotte, North Carolina. But before they could compete in the Junior Olympics, which are the qualifying tournament for the USA Junior World Team, Carlton made sure to stop by the Makerplace.
“What I do is armory, and armory is a collective term for any and all repair and replacement of parts or building of fencing weapons,” Carlton said. He stops by the Makerplace on a weekly basis to ensure all his students’ equipment is in top condition. “[I make] sure that everything works by the time it reaches my student’s hand [in the] next practice.”
Carlton began using the Makerplace in October 2023, needing a quiet space to work without distraction. “[The Makerplace staff] instantly got me oriented on where I could go,” he said. “We found a place I could put a removable bench clamp, and that’s all I really needed, and we made it work.”
Carlton began fencing competitively when he was 11 years old, getting his start in Houston, Texas, then training internationally at Racing Club in Paris, at FC Tauberbishofsheim in Germany, and with the Russian National Team in St. Petersburg, Russia. He was awarded a scholarship to Penn State University’s fencing team, but his career was cut short due to a wrist injury. Some 20 years later, he moved to Arlington Heights, and that was when he found his way back into the world of fencing.
“My wife signed me up for a fencing program through the Arlington Heights Park District and they sniffed me out the moment I went out on guard,” Carlton said. The Illinois Fencing Academy, a national club located in Arlington Heights, works with the Park District. “I was put in touch with the LHS-VHHS Fencing Foundation, which offered me a position with the Thundercats. I couldn't refuse the team name."
When Carlton’s students qualified for the Junior Olympics, he used the Makerplace to get their equipment ready-to-go, repairing their blades beforehand.
Carlton has found the Makerplace’s open flex spaces to be most useful. The Makerplace has plenty of large worktables on wheels and seating to accommodate individuals and small groups. This is the place where makers can gather to work on projects they might not have room for at home, or where they can work alongside other makers in a true collaborative environment.
“It’s heated, it’s safe, there’s help on hand, there’s active facilities for handwashing that are everywhere and it’s something that I don’t have at home during the colder months,” he said. “Sometimes I’ve used it day in, day out, back-to-back days. It’s been invaluable.”
“The Junior Olympics is populated by the best fencers in the country. It is qualifiers for the world team, so we saw some of the best fencers under the age of 21 in the country and possibly the world at that event,” he said. “They did not make it out of the pool cutoffs to the direct elimination matches. But they had a wonderful time and they had so much fun watching some of the top-level fencers compete at the gold medal stage.”
Learn more about the Makerplace at ahml.info/makerplace.
Discovering the art of making one class and project at a time
Walk the talk. Never has this saying been truer than with Arlington Heights resident Lauralee Reese who over the past two years has earned her way into becoming an experienced and accomplished maker -- one Makerplace class and project at a time.
“I tell everyone about the Makerplace, and my advice is always the same,” said Reese, a devoted Arlington Heights Memorial Library customer for 25-plus years who now is also an avid user of the library’s Makerplace. “Start with an instructional class. Learn more about what you can do and what you like to do."
"Then make a one-on-one appointment afterwards so you can take what you learned and build upon it some more,” continued Reese. “The Makerplace staff is so helpful and knowledgeable…and really patient,” she added with a laugh.
Reese’s exploration into the many ways of making began shortly after the Makerplace opened in September 2021. Putting her advice into practice, she enrolled in several “Essentials” classes, the Makerplace’s introductory classes offered monthly to learn the basics about things like sewing, 3D printing and laser cutting. She took a two-part jewelry making class and a Photoshop class at the library as well.
“All the classes are very hands on, and they help get you started,” said Reese who holds a degree in fiber arts and ceramics and has always enjoyed doing crafts but professed, had little-to-no experience when it came to making. Professionally, she worked for 14 years in customer service for the aviation industry and currently works full-time as an office administrator for a local business.
“I really need this as an outlet to balance my nine-to-five job,” said Reese. “I see so many ideas here, it’s hard to reign them all in.”
The multitude of ideas combined with Reese’s newly acquired skills, especially using the Epilog Mini laser cutter, and a willingness to experiment creatively have resulted in a beautiful menagerie of custom items. Some she has given as gifts, like etched wine glasses and the coffee mug she made for a friend using an image she created with Photoshop and the Makerplace’s sublimation printer. Other items she donates in-kind to be sold at the Kerstin Andersson Museum Store at the Swedish Museum in Andersonville where Reese is a board member.
Some of the most in-demand and popular gift items that Reese makes for the store include custom-etched Swedish Dala Horse charms and jewelry, and an assortment of festive holiday ornaments.
In early December, Reese’s talents as a maker will once again be on full display at the Swedish Museum where she will sell many of her custom gift items as a vendor at the museum’s annual holiday market on December 2 and 3.
“It makes me happy to be able to do all of this at the Makerplace,” said Reese. “I don’t know of any other place that has all of this and with so many people willing to share their knowledge and ideas.”
Get started making at the Makerplace by taking a class or making a one-on-one appointment to get a tutorial on a piece of equipment. Learn all about how you, too, can be a maker, at ahml.info/makerplace.
A cut above: Local artist uses Makerplace equipment to create unique works of art
From 3D printers to embroidery machines, the possibilities for creating are endless at the library’s Makerplace. And for one local artist, the Makerplace’s tools and equipment have helped turn abstract ideas into a colorful series of mirrored acrylic art.
Jonathan Pruc is an art teacher at Mundelein High School and has been working as a local artist since he was a student at Elk Grove High School. Even though he first began using the Makerplace’s Epilog Mini 24 Laser Cutter in November 2022, the idea for his mirrored acrylic art began much earlier.
“I’ve always been a figurative artist, but it was COVID and [the] lockdown that kind of changed my artmaking practice. I challenged myself to make a painting every day for a month,” Pruc said. “We were all trapped inside our spaces, so I was just abstracting corners and areas and objects within the home. Looking at those liminal spaces, what happens to space when you're stuck there and it's no longer your home, but it's kind of a confinement? You start to have a different relationship with the area that you reside in.”
Pruc began creating gouache paintings, and over time continued to experiment with the idea of space. This art developed into the mirrored acrylic works he is now creating at the Makerplace.
When Pruc came up with the idea for using acrylic mirror, he needed access to a laser cutter. Having previously attended a Makerplace Tour, which the library offers every month, he remembered the Makerplace had exactly what he needed to continue working on his artwork.
“I was very impressed with the breadth of what the Makerplace offers,” Pruc said. “I was kind of excited thinking about future projects I could utilize using those resources.”
The Makerplace’s laser cutters can be used to cut and engrave digital files with incredible speed and accuracy onto various materials. While Pruc had previous experience working with laser cutters, he realized there were a few challenges he needed to overcome.
“There was some troubleshooting that some of the [Makerplace] staff and I had to do because of the inexperience we both had with the reflective material,” Pruc said. “The staff is really helpful and accommodating and if they don't know the answer, they're more than eager to help you figure it out.”
To date, Pruc has used the Makerplace to create six pieces of artwork, with each piece taking around 40-50 hours to complete. The work he’s made at the Makerplace has been showcased at various galleries and art competitions including Bridgeport Art Center’s 11th Annual Art Competition, Fulton Street Collective and the Norris Cultural Arts Center.
“I think [the Makerplace is] a great opportunity for our community to go and learn something new. There's this misconception that talent or creativity is an inherent trait, but really it is a skill like riding a bike or playing a sport or cooking or any physical activity,” he said. “It just takes practice and the Makerplace is a great opportunity for you to put reps in and learn on some pretty cool tools to make something whether it’s a project for yourself or for someone else.”
If you would like to see more of Pruc’s artwork you can visit www.jonathanpruc.com or follow him on Instagram @jonathanpruc.
The next time you create something using the library’s Studio, Makerplace or an item from the Library of Things collection, share it with the library at ahml.info/creator_spotlight. We want to shine the spotlight on your creation and show others too.
In the Studio with Garry Guillaume
Anyone can use the library to create, explore and further develop their passions and interests – just take a look at Garry Guillaume, a nurse at Bella Terra Morton Grove who recently learned he could use the library’s Studio to further pursue his love for music.
Guillaume is a Haitian American musician. He developed his love for music through his family’s involvement in church while growing up in Haiti. He works long hours as a nurse, but still manages to find time every day to work on his music.
“My job is sometimes very busy and may be stressful and music is the thing I always use as a therapy to calm me down,” he said. “It’s kind of like I don’t feel complete for the day [unless] I do some music, no matter what the time.”
“Sometimes as a musician and a composer, you might have an idea, a certain feeling, [and] you cannot go to sleep unless you put that idea somewhere and you know for sure you’re not going to forget it,” he continued. “It’s a passion.”
Guillaume began working on his album L’OMNI in December 2021. In need of a recording studio, Guillaume learned about the library’s Studio from his friends. He ended up using the Studio two to three times a week to work on his music.
“When I got there, I was really amazed to see how much [is] available for people like me who have the needs to do certain things and maybe not the means to do it,” Guillaume said. “It was a very welcoming, calm area where you have the space, and you can focus on what you’re doing. It was a very good experience.”
Guillaume used the library’s Studio to record vocals, design his album cover and put together his music using Logic Pro X. The Studio provides a lot of resources for musicians like Guillaume – a variety of software such as Ableton Live, a condenser mic, an electric drum kit, lights and backdrops, a Maschine, a MIDI keyboard, a vocal booth and more.
“Recording vocals costs a lot because you want to make sure everything is good, everything is on point. And it’s time consuming. And every single minute you spend, it’s a lot of money going to a professional space,” he said. “To have this for free...I’m very, very grateful about that.”
The finished album was released on July 17, 2022, with 11 tracks, mostly in French, with two tracks in English and Haitian Creole, bringing together Christian music and upbeat Afro-Caribbean sounds.
“I hope anybody listening to the album can find hope, find joy and have a good time just listening to it, whatever you’re going through,” he said.
“I want to thank the library and everybody who put together this great idea to make [the Studio] available to the public [for] people like me and a lot of young people,” Guillaume said. “I’m sure they’re going to have this as a great opportunity, a possibility to put their talent forward.”
If you’re interested in learning more about Guillaume’s music, you can visit garryguillaumemusic.hearnow.com/. And the next time you create something using the library’s Studio, Makerplace or an item from the Library of Things collection, share it with the library at ahml.info/creator_spotlight. We want to shine the spotlight on your creation and show others too.
Arlington Heights artist captures award-winning images using the library's photography light box
Look at the amazing detail in this gorgeous photograph of milkweed created by Arlington Heights visual artist Jeanne Garrett. Jeanne took this photograph, along with a series of other milkweed images, a few years ago, using the photography light box in the library's Studio. Stunning and timeless, the photographs capture in intricate detail the beauty of milkweed in its many stages and were featured in an exhibit this summer at the Tall Grass Arts Gallery in Park Forest where they received an Award of Excellence.
Congratulations, Jeanne! Thank you for sharing your beautiful work with us! To view more of Jeanne's work, visit www.jeannegarrettphotography.com.
What special object or item would you like to photograph? Borrow a photography light box from our Library of Things collection to use at home or reserve a room in the library's Studio and request a light box for use during your creative session.
One class leads to gift-making odyssey
“You made this?” These words are music to the ears of Erin Kaiser, a 29-year-old Arlington Heights resident who recently has been on a creative roll at the library’s Makerplace. Kaiser submitted some of her completed projects to our Creator Spotlight—each more fabulous than the next: personalized gift tags, an engraved cutting board, a beautiful slate charcuterie board and topping them all - 20 personalized ID badge lanyards Kaiser made for her colleagues at Riley Elementary School in District 21.
“I took one essentials class last fall, the intro to laser cutting,” said Kaiser. “I wanted to get my feet wet, and the class was really well done. We learned about Adobe Illustrator and how to download images and make them into cut-able files. At the end of the class, I left super excited.”
Since then, Kaiser has returned to the Makerplace more than a dozen times to use the laser cutter and associated tools and materials to make one-of-a-kind gifts. A self-described creative at heart, (Kaiser photographed her projects using the library’s light box from our Library of Things collection), she is quick to share tips and encouragement on what it takes to make.
“By far the easiest project,” said Kaiser when asked to describe the piece of slate she personalized at the Makerplace. “In less than a half-hour I was done. The longest or hardest part was picking out the font. It’s that easy.”
She added the cost can’t be beaten either. Kaiser estimated that it cost about $10 in materials to create her “favorite project”- the 20 ID lanyards she gave as holiday gifts to coworkers.
“To be able to affordably create and give really nice, unique gifts that people love feels really good,” said Kaiser. “One teacher liked hers so much, she has it hanging on her wall as art.”
What advice does Kaiser have for others who are interested in getting started making gifts that wow?
“First, take a class to get yourself in the door,” said Kaiser, “and then throw something at the wall and see what sticks. Part of making is failing and experimenting. I’ve made things, I would never have had the opportunity to create and that’s why I love the Makerplace!”
‘Whoa, did you create that?’ Artist uses Makerplace equipment to take design work to a new level.
At the library’s Makerplace, anything is possible. All you need is a bit of creativity, something web and graphic designer and Arlington Heights resident Zoe Feast has plenty of.
Feast often creates pattern design work as a hobby and has recently been using the Makerplace to show off her patterns in an entirely new way with art pieces made using recycled wood.
“I came to one of the [Makerplace tours] and I just jumped right in,” Feast said. She quickly began using the Makerplace’s Dremel LC40 laser cutter to etch her pattern designs into wood she collected from her volunteer work at Cuba Marsh Forest Preserve in Deer Park, a part of her life that has even inspired the patterns she creates. She works in habitat restoration to remove invasive and non-native species.
“The wood when you see it sliced up, it’s so, so beautiful. Even in its raw form, it’s lovely. And the fabric design work I’ve been doing was initially inspired by my work on the prairie. I started painting the flowers I was seeing, and I thought ‘what else can I do with this?’,” she said.
The process for creating these pieces involved a lot of trial and error. Each piece of wood is unique in size, and it took time to figure out how to center patterns onto the wood while using the laser cutter. Practice makes perfect and she now nails it “every single time.” She regularly uses the laser cutter to create both small coasters and larger art pieces. And this process of creating has captured people’s attention.
“I’m in there and people come and see my designs and are like, whoa, did you create that?,” she said. “It’s very visual so people like to look and see it happening. And the detail that laser can get is amazing; the resolution is incredible; so you can really get very fine details. It’s a lot of fun.”
Feast already has her eyes set on more Makerplace projects as well. In the future she wants to try using the Makerplace’s quilting machines and Cricut Maker Cutting Machine. She also said she’s interested in taking some of the Makerplace cooking classes.
“I’m not done with that place at all. I think the more you go there, the more you can see the opportunities, the potential to learn new things and I really do enjoy learning new tricks,” she said.
“It really is an amazing place and I absolutely love it. I’d be there every day if I could.”
If you’re interested in seeing more of Feast’s art, visit www.zoefeast.com. And the next time you create something using the library’s Studio, Makerplace or an item from the Library of Things collection, share it with the library at www.ahml.info/creator_spotlight. We want to shine the spotlight on your creation and show others too.
Local musicians create music in the Studio
When you visit the library’s Studio you can get creative with video, music, graphic design and more – the possibilities are endless, and local musicians Charlie Crane and Julie Jurgens recently took advantage of the library’s equipment to create and produce a song cycle called Appointed Tasks.
Jurgens is a singer and songwriter who has been “making audiences across the Midwest weep into their beverages with her fearless songs and plaintive voice for over 20 years.”
In early 2020, after her gig schedule was cleared by Illinois’ stay-at-home order, she began recording many of her previously unreleased compositions in her basement studio. The result was Appointed Tasks, an autobiographical song cycle that “approaches love, loss, trauma, neglect, abuse and perseverance with a profound sense of empathy.”
Over the course of several months, Jurgens and Crane used the library’s Studio to help bring Jurgens’ music to life.
“The piano on the song ‘A Whole’ was recorded in Studio Production, and the trumpet part on the song ‘Open Door’ was notated in Studio B, both using the MIDI keyboard and Logic Pro,” Crane said.
Appointed Tasks ended up as a collaborative effort. Crane works at the library as a Digital Services Advisor and worked as the producer for Jurgens’ music. The song cycle features appearances from many local musicians who recorded their parts separately and remotely, and the artwork on the album cover was created by Sam Wróbel of Sparrow Papercraft.
To listen to Appointed Tasks, you can learn more at juliejurgens.com.
Took a class. Made some gifts.
Everyone loves a personalized gift! That’s what Arlington Heights resident Elaine Schreck decided as she set out to handmake some gifts this past December, a tray for her brother and his fiancée with a customized vinyl design of their wedding date and buttons and magnets for family members featuring photos of her newborn, Eddie.
“All of these gifts were a big hit,” said Schreck. “To make the tray, I repurposed and stained a piece of wood and the handles were antiques from some old kitchen cabinets. The only cost was for the vinyl cutout - it cost me a dollar to make at the Makerplace!”
Schreck’s money-saving, gift-making adventure first began when she enrolled in a Makerplace Essentials Class: Vinyl Cutting.
“The class was really good to learn how to use the Cricut software and the rest of the instruments,” said Schreck. “Before the class, I was having a hard time conceptualizing how I was going to get this project from an idea in my head to a finished product. But once you see the software and how it works, it starts to make sense and the staff was so helpful in answering questions.”
For the buttons and magnets, Schreck used the Makerplace’s button maker and its paper cutter to turn 4x6 inch photos into one-of-a-kind rounded designs featuring the many faces of Baby Eddie.
“I was so excited - especially with the buttons,” said Schreck. “It was so much fun to make them, and they turned out better than I expected. Everyone loved them.”