Play is one of our richest sources of learning. Whether imaginative pastime with found objects like twigs and stones or deep engagement in games with a structure like Chess or D&D, play is a chance to explore deep ideas or shallow imaginings. I love to create games and I am always looking for inspiration. This game board is Backgammon but played in a circle. The center ring takes the place of the bar on a regular Backgammon board and the light and dark stones are the pieces. The larger dark dice are actually pieces for a relic Viking game. The Backgammon set and the Oden dice were both made for a Viking-themed event. The board is deerskin and the Celtic knotwork was laser engraved into the leather.
Maker
Joel Gordon
Business
Steam Rocket Engine
City
Bella Vista
Website
https://www.steamrocketengine.com/
Bio
Joel is a technician, an artist, designer, and fabricator. As an Air Force NCO he received advanced training in electronics and coding and later studied art, design, and mechanics. He was Scenic Lead and Production Engineer at the world-renowned Chicago Scenic Studios where he created special effects and properties for theatre, television, and film.
Joel was Co-founder and Executive Director of Arkansas’s first Makerspace, The Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub. While at the Hub, Joel was chosen to participate in the White House Science and Technology Cabinet’s efforts to create the “Nation of Makers”, a 501c3 that supports the Maker Movement in the U.S. Joel has worked with the Nation of Makers for the last 6 years and is currently the delegate to NoM for the State of Arkansas. He founded Steam Rocket Engine LLC, an innovation and makerspace consulting firm. He has worked with cities, universities and private industries around the nation on makerspace design and development as well as issues of placemaking, talent retention, and innovative economic development. Joel relocated to Bentonville and worked as Making and Tinkering Manager at the Scott Family Amazeum. During the Covid 19 crisis, he was asked to join a policy working group concerned with Maker efforts to develop PPE. He now works as an independent consultant.
Joel has been invited to speak and present at events around the nation. He has presented three times in Washington D.C. at the Capitol Hill Maker Faire and for the Congressional Maker Caucus concerning the new “Maker Economy”. He was a presenter for the FabLearn Conference at Columbia Teachers College, and at The Nation of Makers Conference in Chattanooga. He resides in Bella Vista, Arkansas.