This year, AS220 is partnering with Spocka Summa of Anti-Robot Club and Public to bring a marketplace to Foo Fest on Saturday, August 9th. While shopping for cool handmade local arts, crafts, and other goods is fun, we didn’t want it to be solely just an experience of buying things and exchanging money. Luckily, we knew Spocka would be the perfect person to handle this, as he shares the same ideas about community and bringing people together. Check him and his partner Casandra Inez out at anti-robotclub.com and publicpvd.com.
When did you start organizing your markets?
Spocka: I’ve been doing markets since 2015, first putting them together as part of concerts under different names and collaborating with different people, and then this version since the end of 2018. When they first started, I’d have maybe five, ten, fifteen vendors. Now it’s more like 50 to 100.
What was your inspiration to do it?
Spocka: It was created to give artists and small businesses a platform to showcase and sell their work, and organizations a platform to share information. You don’t have to be selling anything. The main thing I want it to be is an opportunity to share ideas, with low or no barriers for entry. We support different artists on different levels depending on where they’re at. There are a lot of first time vendors, and we try to prioritize creatives based out of Providence… and then even further, people born and raised in Providence, because we’ve found that there has been a lack of opportunities for them.
How has it evolved?
Spocka: I’ve found that as we’ve been doing more markets, people are becoming friends and networking with each other. I’ve seen people create partnerships or even rent studio spaces together. So, the idea is not “Hey, just come here and hang and buy stuff”, it’s really a hub for people to come together and work with other creatives.
Does that tie in with the idea behind Anti-Robot Club in general?
Spocka: The idea behind Anti-Robot Club is encouraging individuals to be themselves and not let anybody else, whether that’s a person or a system, dictate what your program is. Like a robot. Program meaning who you are, how you navigate life, and what you gravitate towards and believe in. As humans, we’re ever changing and there should be no reason why someone else is in control of you. Technology can only do what you make it to do. It can’t do anything beyond that. So, our idea is to break those walls down and let artists know that you can be who you want to be, and you shouldn’t let someone else determine that for you.
Why did you want to bring it to Foo Fest?
Spocka: This is something I do consistently, and I thought the opportunity to show up in a different environment would be cool. The vendors that I work with, they’re with me at the same place every month. Now I’m trying to expand and say “Hey, there’s this space over here where you can go!” and “There’s another spot over there!” I think a lot of the vendors I work with will appreciate that. I think Foo Fest is the perfect opportunity to show what the possibilities are when you collaborate.
Where else can people find you?
Spocka: My partner, Casandra Inez, and I run Public, which is a space in Olneyville. We have a gift shop, a gallery, shared studio spaces, and different programming and workshops. We’re open every weekend from 12 to 4. The space is available for all creatives to use, and if they have ideas, we can provide them with space to make them happen.