DIY Fest 2019

Sometimes we describe The Scrap Exchange as a “creative-reuse center” and then wonder if Triangle newcomers (and even some long-timers) have any idea what we mean. After all, it’s not like every city has one, and that’s what makes it a Durham institution. In essence, the nonprofit makes “waste not, want not” more than an idle maxim, after nearly thirty years of collecting every kind of scrap material imaginable from local businesses and residents and then releasing it back into a creative ecosystem of artists, makers, and teachers. There’s no better time to dive in than the third-annual DIY Fest this Saturday, which is synergized with the yearlong Durham 150 sesquicentennial celebration. The family-friendly activities with more than thirty creators include screen-printing with Supergraphic Print Lab, a cardboard neighborhood-building project, robot sumo wrestling, and a Q&A with directors Laura Nicholson and Ann Woodward on the emerging “Reuse Arts District” centered on The Scrap Exchange, along with food trucks and live music by Swedish Wood Patrol. Yes, we said “robot sumo-wrestling.