Aurora

BRAF-sponsored and fiscally sponsored Civic Arts project Aurora (by Charles Gadeken), is a 32-foot tall metal weeping willow tree sculpture illuminated by roughly 40,000 LED lights. This project will be installed in front of Palo Alto’s City Hall this summer.

Aurora at Burning Man in 2011, photo by James Addison

Youth Education Spaceship

BRAF, along with partner organizations Burning Man Project, the Exploratorium, and The Crucible, present the Y.E.S.!

Led by artist Dana Albany, the Youth Education Spaceship (Y.E.S.) project is a collaborative endeavor that involves the construction of a mobile spaceship classroom. The sculpture that will be exhibited at Maker Faire is a mosaic made from found objects and repurposed materials.

Like this mosaic, the innovative curriculum of the project is an assemblage of various elements. Embracing a radically hands-on approach toward learning, the Y.E.S. project has been engaging San Francisco youth in activities that range from metalwork and glass-blowing, to robotics, photography, and video projects. Y.E.S. has also been functioning as an innovative platform for teaching these kids about topics such as environmentalism, solar energy, astronomy, ancient civilizations, and space travel.

In addition to Maker Faire, there are several destination points on this spacecraft’s voyage – The Crucible, the Exploratorium, and finally, Burning Man.

At Maker Faire, visitors will have the opportunity to add to the spacecraft’s interior display by making planets with materials provided on-site. Look for Y.E.S. in the education area (#6).

Some of the young artists working on the Y.E.S. spaceship sculpture.

Also, be sure to look for “BRAFFY Art Seal of Approval” signs posted next to projects we love!

Maker Faire
Saturday, May 18th – Sunday, May 19th 2013
Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Sunday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

San Mateo County Event Center
1346 Saratoga Dr.
San Mateo, CA 94403

You can also download this smartphone app to help you navigate through the event!

In This Issue:

• Aurora at Maker Faire
• Grantee Updates
  • Festival of Street Art at Bartlett Events
  • Imagine Figment
  • The Pool by Jen Lewin
  • The Temple for Christchurch
• Partner Organizations
  • American Steel Studios present Art + Industry
  • Don’t miss Maker Faire!
  • The Youth Education Spaceship will be there, too!

See Aurora at Maker Faire!

Local Palo Alto children have successfully lead a public art initiative to place the luminous 32-foot tall metal weeping willow tree sculpture Aurora by Charles Gadeken in front of Palo Alto’s City Hall. They have won approval from the city for this project. This BRAF-supported and fiscally sponsored project will be installed sometime this summer.

Look for Aurora at Maker Faire, and sneak a peak at the crew’s work in progress. They will be hard at work at Maker Faire making new leaves for the tree.

More details about Maker Faire below in the partner organizations section.

Local Palo Alto children Sam and Julia with Chares Gadeken’s Aurora.

Grantee Updates

Lots of news this month from our new and alumni grantees! Engage with our creative community around the country and around the world and bring some art into your life!

2013 Grantee - Festival of Street Art at Bartlett Events

In celebration and in honor of their beloved city, the citizen-artists at the Bartlett Yard are going forward with the grand opening of their Mural Fest on May 11th. Two massive bus garage buildings on an industrial site in Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood will be transformed into the largest collection of street art Boston has ever seen.

Festival of Street Art Grand Opening
Saturday, May 11, 2013
10:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Bartlett Yard
2565 Washington Street
Boston, MA 02119

For more information visit Facebook and www.bartlettevents.org

The Bartlett Bus Yard, site of 2013 Grantee Project Festival of Street Art at Bartlett Events

Join in this celebration of Boston and their artists!

2012 Grantee - The Pool

The Pool by Jen Lewin will be featured at the Google IO After Hours Party May 15, at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, and in a solo show by the artist at the new Colorado University Art Museum in Boulder opening May 31 and exhibiting through July 2013.

For more details visit www.jenlewinstudio.com and www.colorado.edu/cuartmuseum.

2008 Grantee – Figment

Figment Boston and the Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation invite you to IMAGINE FIGMENT, a celebration of interactive art, creativity, and a culture where anything is possible! Roving minstrels, aerial performances, interactive light sculptures and installations steam-powered by the imagination will create a truly inspirational environment.

IMAGINE FIGMENT
Friday, May 31, 2013
7:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation
Waltham, MA

2010 BRAF Grantee FIGMENT Boston presents Imagine FIGMENT.

2012 Grantee - The Temple for Christchurch

Incredible news from New Zealand! After some initial skepticism from the media, the country’s press has embraced the concept of the post-earthquake temple, most notably in this amazing national television feature. Furthermore, New Zealand’s Head of State the Governor-General (and the Queen’s official representative for those versed in the intricacies of Commonwealth government) has invited the Temple organizers to share their vision for the city’s future at a round table talk! Temple artists tell us they will use this opportunity to talk about how to incorporate the 10 Principles of Burning Man and the lessons they learned “from the dust of the playa” into the civic fabric that is the new Christchurch.

2012 Grantee Temple for Christchurch, conceptual digital rendering.

Partner Organization News

Massive Encounters with Art in Oakland

Our dear friend and BRAF artist extraordinaire Karen Cusolito has invited us to a fantastic day of art and merriment at Oakland’s frenetic heart of creativity, American Steel Studios. This huge arts incubator and work space in West Oakland will host Art + Industry, an interactive group exhibition and behind-the-scenes look at one of the most powerful communities of Bay Area artists and innovators. But, it’s not just exhibitions! You can look forward to a day-long schedule of guided tours, demonstrations, and artist talks. In the evening, the event will light up with fire sculpture, fire performance, and art cars. You’ll also enjoy craft-brewed beer and organic juices!

Click here to check out the full schedule of events.

Open studios are held May 11-12 and the full exhibition runs from May 11-18. Visit their Facebook page for more details.

Art + IndustryAmerican Streel Studios
Saturday, May 11, 2013
12:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.

1960 Mandela Parkway
Oakland, CA
(Enter on 20th Street)

Maker Faire

The Bay Area’s Maker Faire is in just a few weeks! If you love interactive art experiences as much as we do, you won’t miss this awesome event.  We’ll be there! Look for ‘BRAF Art Seal of Approval’ signs around the Faire. These signs will be posted at every project BRAF has funded in the past. (There’s a lot of them!)

Maker Faire
Saturday, May 18th – Sunday, May 19th 2013
Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Sunday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

San Mateo County Event Center
1346 Saratoga Dr.
San Mateo, CA 94403

Burning Man Project

Also at Maker Faire, BRAF and partners Maker Faire, the Burning Man Project, Exploratorium, and the Crucible will be debuting an art project, the Youth Education Spaceship, or, Y.E.S. This collaborative project is lead by local artist Dana Albany. Dana is working with local children to build the sculpture using mostly reclaimed materials.

Some of the Young Artists working on the Y.E.S. spaceship sculpture

Through a participatory design and construction process, children will have the opportunity to work in metal, mosaic, mold making, glass fusion and glass blowing, photography, videography, soundscape creation, or robotics. The processes of selecting and collecting art materials and of designing the sculpture will serve as access points to educate the young artists about environmental issues, ancient civilizations, space, astronomy, and, most importantly, the value of collaboration and community. Read more about the Y.E.S. project on the Burning Man Project’s blog. Stop by and say ‘hi’ to Dana and the young artists at Maker Faire!

Inspired by a Burning Man ritual, the Temple for Christchurch will serve as a sacred space where people can leave mementos and write on its walls before witnessing its eventual burning. Through these acts of renewal and destruction, the residents of Christchurch will be encouraged to participate in a process of grieving and transformation.

Watch this video clip by 3 News New Zealand to learn more about 2012 BRAF Grantee Project The Temple for Christchurch.

FLOAT was a participatory art/design project using air-quality-sensing kites in Beijing, China. FLOAT had two components; a workshop and a public installation.  Watch the film to hear more from the artists and participants:

Creativity, Collaboration, and the Fantastic New Bike Bridge now on view in Downtown Oakland

Elevation, I.T., and Home. Wondrous large creations and small. Metalwork, sculpture, paintings, and drawings. Prolific and provocative, Michael Christian has been a major presence on and off the Playa with his playfully interactive sculptures. He prefers to let his art speak for itself. However, on the eve of the “official” opening of Bike Bridge, Christian graciously shared some thoughts with BRAF about working jointly with twelve young students and the creative process.

Interview by Peter Bejger.

How did you get involved? And why did you get involved?

I always enjoy the tremendous freedom implicit in the repurposing and reinvention of what others discard or often refer to as scrap. Working with young adults seemed a logical companion to this as they still have fresh minds when it comes to building and have yet to form unmovable ideas of what an object ‘is or is not supposed to be’.

Describe the development of the idea. Was the original form worked out in your sketches? Or was this a collective idea?

The original idea was to pull apart the bikes into their many separate parts and see what unfolds when we start to manipulate them and put them back together again.  I had a very rough idea from a loose scribble I presented to them but it was a collective idea, open to everyone’s input or creative idea. The structure of tires was the only piece I thought of using prior to meeting with the girls. The rest came out of a collective input and experimentation of ideas.

How were your young collaborators chosen? Were you involved in the process? Or were they in place when you came onboard?

They were pulled together prior to my coming together although I don’t believe they knew each other collectively.

Your work has a very powerful, singular focus. Let’s talk about collaboration, group effort, and artistic vision. How do you approach this?

No large-scale structure of any kind can in all honesty ever be directly associated with one person.  I may have the idea and vision but it takes many hands and shared thoughts to work through the challenges of building anything beyond simple human scale. I mean seriously, people should give more props to those who developed tools like the modern day crane that make these creations possible to execute in the first place. Needless to say it’s always a collective process. It’s an amazing experience to become part of a collective moving towards a common goal. I always invite in ideas from those I’m working with because inevitably someone will see a better pathway to executing some required tasks. In the end it’s really a lot about problem solving. The experience is not nearly as satisfying if I’m not expanding my own knowledge of the process of building along the way. Working with others is the best way I’ve found so far to accomplish this.

How about the role of “teacher.” You’ve instructed and guided adults, now younger students. Any insights on similarities or differences?

Well, young people aren’t afraid to honestly express how they feel about how they feel about everything including if they feel your ideas are silly. They are often spot on unfortunately. Adults are just grown up children with better manners. They are often trying to learn and unlearn at the same time. Students haven’t started unlearning yet.

What about context? The desert is such a specific and challenging and flattering environment for an artist’s work. This piece was always meant for an urban environment. Does context ever make a difference for you?

Context is always very important but I think your subject matter and how it relates to humans in generally is probably most key.  Most everyone on the planet can relate to bicycles so you could put that anywhere on the planet and people would connect with it on some level.  I think in general, the further you get from the simple daily experience of being human the more context plays into how people appreciate and connect with art.

We can imagine what your collaborators may have gained by working with you. What have you gained from the experience?

The pieces I seem to identify with as my favorites are the ones I had the most fun building while simultaneously learning and growing in the process. I think the bike arch would qualify as a good one.

Finally, a word about what’s next. Drifts will be installed on the Black Rock Desert at Burning Man later this year. A preview?

I tend to rely heavily on process so not really much to preview. I can say I am excited about building these particular sculptures this year because they appeal to sensibilities of my creative process I don’t visit as often as I’d like. There is much more free form work involved and not as heavy on engineering.

• Bike Bridge - Opening Celebrations April 5th!
• Help bring Aurora to Palo Alto!
• Partner Organization News:
  • Join Burning Man Project and Earth Guardians for Earth Day San Francisco
• Grantee Updates
  • Bartlett Events – Get involved!
  • Project SUITCASE
  • The Temple for Christchurch
  • Global Lives Project
  • Reverend Billy & The Church of Stop Shopping Choir
  • Aeolian RIde

The Bike Bridge is Ready For Its Close-Up! Come Celebrate With Us April 5th!

Join BRAF on April 5th at 6:30 pm in downtown Oakland for the grand debut and Opening Reception of The Bike Bridge! The sculpture, a collaboration with the youth of Oakland, artist Michael Christian, and partner organization The Crucible, will serve as the focal point of the exciting new Uptown Art Park on Telegraph Avenue, adjacent to the Fox Theater. Don’t miss the art, music, tours, and food trucks!

The Bike Bride in Oakland, CA. Photo by BRAF staff.

Bike Bridge Presentation and Uptown Art Park Grand Opening
Friday, April 5, 2013
19th Street and Telegraph Avenue
Oakland, California
6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Help Bring Aurora to Palo Alto!

Aurora at Burning Man in 2011, photo by James Addison

BRAF has signed on to help bring Aurora, the beautiful life-size weeping willow tree by Charles Gadeken (made for Burning Man 2011) to downtown Palo Alto.  In addition to providing a direct grant to the project, BRAF is acting as fiscal sponsor, allowing you to make a tax-deductible donation to Aurora Palo Alto today.  The team behind the project has already secured support and approval from the city for the installation, and other than raising the required funds to pay for the installation, maintenance, and de-installation, they also have a lot of work to do to refurbish and upgrade the piece. From the artist and lead volunteers:

In preparation, the all-metal sculpture is headed back to the Box Shop in San Francisco to be “ruggedized.” Work parties will begin in the next couple of weeks, and we’re scheduling volunteers now.  Contact charlie @qbox.org to get in on the action. You’ll be joined by local school-aged kids who are the impetus to getting Aurora a new home. Contact Harry @Hirschman.com or call 650-619-5108 for more information to become part of the AuroraPaloAlto team.

For more information, you can read more on BRAF’s Aurora page, the project’s  Facebook or www.AuroraPaloAlto.com.

Get involved with some of our partner organizations!

Earth Day in San Francisco

Create Eco art? Can you demonstrate a DIY earth-friendly project? You can join Burning Man Project and Earth Guardians and dozens of other organizations, individuals, and artists at Earth Day San Francisco on April 20th from 10am to 6pm at Civic Center Plaza. This unique celebration packs a powerful day of green sustainability discussions, activism, workshops and solutions into one full day of fun and excitement for the whole family. For more information, visit EarthDaySF.org. To participate, contact EarthDaySF @gmail.com.

Grantee Updates

Check out these updates from our new and alumni grantees, with lots of opportunities to get involved!

2013 Grantee – Bartlett Events

On Saturday, May 11 bARTlett Events will kick off their season of free arts and community events with an all day art extravaganza. The day will start with dozens of artists simultaneously painting murals on two massive bus garage buildings on an abandoned industrial site in Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood. Once finished, the site will be the home of the largest collection of street art Boston has ever seen. Wear old clothes so you can join in the painting fun!

In addition to the painting, there will be site-specific art, food trucks, and entertainment. The Floorlords b-boy/girl crew will be on hand with breakdancing, musical talents, and writing on a wall of their own, and at least five other artists will be on site installing non-mural art. Among the pieces will be two giant tapestries by Nate Swain and an installation of the globally acclaimed (and past BRAF grantee project) Before I Die.

Want to paint a mural? There are lots of garage doors and wall spaces left! Fill out our short form here to get a space!

Need a place to sit and enjoy your meal from the food trucks? Enjoy the awesome new furniture that the students at the YouthBuild Boston Designery are making for the site out of reclaimed pallets and other materials!

Bartlett Yard, 2565 Washington St, Boston, MA 02119
Saturday, May 11, 10AM to 5PM
For more information: Visit Facebook and www.bartlettevents.org
RAIN DATE: Saturday, May 18

Photo by Dan Rajter. Courtesy of Bartlett Events.

2013 Grantee - Project SUITCASE

The first interactive “art suitcase” is making its premiere journey April 4-7 from the
Czech capital of Prague to San Francisco/Oakland to be displayed at the Burning Man
Global Leadership Conference. Project SUITCASE is now officially on the road and updates about the travels and adventures of Suitcase No. 1 will be available on www.projectsuitcase.cz. Bon Voyage!

2012 Grantee – The Temple for Christchurch

The Temple for Christchurch has been stirring some spirited discussion in the New Zealand press, from the art section to the front page. The earthquake was a major emotional trauma for the city and the Temple elicits a fascinating discussion on art, healing, and community.

For more information visit www.templeforchristchurch.org.

2012 Grantee - The Pool

Jen Lewin’s The Pool was a hit at SXSW and has gotten some great press! Due to popular demand Lewin is now creating a second version of the piece. Both versions will be on tour this summer, traveling to The Electric Daisy Festival NYC, Chicago, Las Vegas and Orlando, Beyond Wonderland LA, Google IO at San Francisco’s Moscone Center in mid-May, and a 4 month solo exhibit titled “Its Electric” at the Univeristy of Colorado Boulder. Check out jenlewinstudio.com/community-sculpture/the-pool for an updated schedule over the summer months.

2007 Grantee – Global Lives Project

Global Lives Accepting Filmmaker Inquiries for Lives in Transit

The Global Lives Project is currently seeking filmmakers worldwide to contribute to its new series of ten 24-hour films — Lives in Transit. They accept applications on a rolling basis and welcome inquiries from filmmakers who want to work with a dynamic collective of global artists to produce this curated series of transit workers around the world today. To ensure that the Lives in Transit series of ten shoots is globally representative, they have specific needs that are high priority in our selection process. They especially encourage new submissions from Eastern Asia, specifically from China, Taiwan, South Korea, North Korea, and Mongolia.

Learn more at globallives.org/participate/livesintransit/call-for-filmmakers or www.facebook.com/globallives

2004 Grantee - Reverend Billy & The Church of Stop Shopping Choir

Reverend Billy & The Church of Stop Shopping Choir bless the Bay Area with
“The Revolt of the Golden Toads Tour”!

Sing out, clap your hands, and rejoice! This Bay Area tour gets underway as the Golden Toad approaches the 25th anniversary of its extinction. The glowing amphibian was killed by a changing climate’s hot El Nino winds in its mountain home in Costa Rica. On Easter Sunday March 31, the Stop Shopping singer/activists jumpstarted the beautiful animal’s resurrection, with a performance in the JP Morgan Chase Bank at Astor Place in New York City’s East Village. They wore Golden Toad masks performing at this particular big bank because it finances the most greenhouse gasses. The Stop Shoppers are “taking their toad on the road,” and will invite the public to invade Chase Bank branches throughout the week’s tour. The culmination of the Revolt of the Golden Toad Tour in San Francisco is the show at the Victoria Theatre, where in a previous church service Burning Man’s Steven Raspa was canonized in the Stop Shopping faith’s “Fabulous Sainthood.” Churchgoers, to encourage the toad’s resurrection, are requested to wear gold.

For dates and venues of the California tour visit www.revbilly.com/events.
Watch the Reverend Billy Freakstorm sermon Golden Toad for Pope!

2004 Grantee - Aeolian Ride

Join the world’s only inflatable bike ride, free! Aeolian Ride is happening in Hong Kong Sunday April 28th, 2013.

Aeolian Ride is an international event where public art meets cycling. Riders sign up free online to meet and ride bicycles in sculptural costumes which inflate as they ride, transforming the landscape of the city. There are three suit shapes, a “bunny” a “bubble” and a “drop”. Aeolian Ride seeks to excite, delight and involve the rider as well as the passerby.

The first Aeolian Ride took place in New York July 04, 2004, since then there have been 22 rides in 19 different cities around the world. This project was created by Brooklyn-based artist Jessica Findley and more of her work can be seen at www.sonicribbon.com.

SIGN UP & DETAILS AT: www.aeolian-ride.info

A new piece in the SF Bay Guardian discusses number of BRAF projects including the Raygun Gothic Rocketship and the Bike Bridge.  The Guardian explores the history and political implications of temporary installation of large-scale public art as pioneered in San Francisco by BRAF and mayor Gavin Newsom.

• The Raygun Gothic Rocketship takes off!
• Bike Bridge - Opening Celebrations April 5^th!
• Partner Organization News:
  • Maker Faire 2013 – Call for entries
  • Third Friday Night Lights event
• Grantee Updates
  • The Temple for Christchurch
  • Wind Playground
  • Ludale – French CORE project
  • Burning Baskets Project
  • Swap-O-Rama-Rama

The Raygun Gothic Rocketship Takes Off

Ground Control to…all citizens of the Bay Area!  Alert! Alert! The Raygun Gothic Rocketship is ready to blast off!

The iconic Raygun Gothic Rockethsip against the backdrop of the Bay Lights. Photo by John Curley.

Celebrate the departure of our brave cosmic explorers for the Centauri system from the launching pad on San Francisco’s waterfront. Friday, March 15th, 2013 is your last chance to visit the Rocketship at its current location before it takes off. Stop by around 5:00 p.m. We hear the crew has some surprises in store for you!

Stick around for the the first Third Friday Night Lights bike ride event at 7:00 p.m. See below for details.

Oakland’s Bike Bridge Installed! Come Celebrate With Us April 5^th!

It is up and it is beautiful! The stunning Bike Bridge project is now on display at the Uptown Art Park at 19th and Telegraph. Call it a dress rehearsal.  While this fantastic artwork is ready for prime time viewing, the surrounding terrain is still in preparation and the City of Oakland has scheduled the Uptown Art Park Grand Opening on Friday, April 5^th. See you there!

The Bike Bridge by Michael Christian and student artists

Bike Bridge Opening Reception and Uptown Art Park Grand Opening

Friday, April 5, 2013
19^th Street and Telegraph Avenue
Oakland, California
6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Also, the Bike Bridge is already getting attention from the press!  The San Francisco Bay Guardian has a nice write-up as a part of its story on temporary vs. permanent public art.

Get involved with some of our partner organizations!

Get Ready for Maker Faire!

Creators, tinkerers, performers, presenters, and dreamers: don’t forget! The deadline to submit an entry to Maker Faire Bay Area 2013 is Friday, March 15! For details on how to participate visit makerfaire.com/bayarea-2013-callformakers

Third Friday Night Lights

Join us in participating in the very first Third Friday Night Lights event! Inspired by the dazzling display of the new Bay Lights project, this new, monthly gathering and nighttime bike ride will be a place to showcase your blinkiest and sparkliest get up. That human discoball costume isn’t just for Burning Man anymore!

This month, the TFNL crew will gather at the Raygun Gothic Rocketship’s launch site, on Pier 14, at 7:00 p.m.

For more details visit: 3fnl.org

Grantee Updates

2012 Grantee – The Temple for Christchurch

Our New Zealand friends have sent in the following update:  The Temple for Christchurch has found a site! They are currently moving into their new home at 99 Kilmore St, the former Convention Centre site that has recently finished being demolished. They aim to unveil the temple in early June. The construction process is already underway.

Digital rendering of the 2012 Grantee Temple for Christchurch. Photo courtesy of the artists.

As this project kicks into high gear, the Temple for Christchurch crew are seeking a number of interns. Get involved with a large scale project that will deepIy effect people’s lives. Check out their internship listings here.”

For more information visit www.templeforchristchurch.org.

2011 Grantee – Wind Playground Unfurls in Australia

2011 Grantee project Wind Playground at Australia’s Sculpture by the Sea exhibit. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Wind Playground, the kinetic sculpture that allows people to play with and understand wind, is on display on the shores of Australia! Congratulations to artists Maia Marinelli and her crew!

For more information visit www.windplayground.com

2011 Grantee project Wind Playground at Australia’s Sculpture by the Sea exhibit. Photo courtesy of the artist.

2011 Grantee – Ludale (of the Mobule project)

Past grantee, artist Ludale, has teamed up with the crew of the French C.O.R.E. project for Burning Man 2013, and gives us this sneak peak of their project, Stairway to Heaven.

French CORE project for Burning Man 2013, ‘Stairway to Heaven.’ Digital rendering courtesy of the artists.

Stairway to Heaven will be “a wooden spiral staircase, in the harmonious proportions of the golden ratio, emerges from the surface of the playa. The sculpture is the summit of the Tower of Babel. By day, participants that approach the structure will see images drawn on the exterior of the structure in the style of prehistoric cave paintings, telling the stories of experiences that the artists seek at Burning Man.  It is an allegory for the hopes of primitive cultures that celebrate the cargo cult…”

Sounds beautiful! We can’t wait to see.

More information is available at the French Core Project Website

2007 Grantee – Burning Basket Project

Mavis Muller’s Burning Baskets Project continues to resonate across time and space.

BRAF grantee Mavis Muller has once again followed the whales from her home in Homer, Alaska, to Maui where she created & directed the 6th annual basket burning for a fiery conclusion to the three day Source Interactive Arts Festival in February.  IMAGIC (Imagine Magic) – Basket of Wisdom & Wizardry was 26th in the Burning Basket series of community-based, interactive, and impermanent art that Mavis started in 2004. Her project has reached out to communities in Alaska, California, Oregon, New Mexico/Mexico border, Hawaii (Big Island, Maui, Molokai), and recently in Spain.

Burning Baskets project in Maui, HI. Photo courtesy of the artist.

With partial funding from the Alaska State Arts Council, Mavis traveled to and was hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art in Vigo, Spain, where she created a basket sculpture of a fractured heart. All were invited to tie colored ribbons to join the two halves of the heart in response to lingering wounds in the wake of Spain’s devastating oil spill ten years ago. Joining – Basket of Earth & Humanity was burned on the auspicious date of 12/12/12.  The ‘action of art’ was a dedicated to the Nunca Mais (Never Again) movement for the protection of the planet’s bodies of water, and for a future of humanity living in harmony with Earth.

Burning Baskets project in Vigo, Spain. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Mavis Muller offers this reflection on the role of creativity and environmental awareness: “Ten years later, Spain’s Galician coastal community is still recovering from the devastating Prestige oil spill.  24 years after the Exxon oil spill in Alaska there are many wounds still to heal.  It was compelling to see how effective art can be in connecting communities separated by a far distance but having a traumatic environmental disaster in common. Art is communication, and a healing force.

Follow Mavis at www.mavismullerart.com.

2005 Grantee – SWAP-O-RAMA-RAMA

Swap-O-Rama-Rama will be at Maker Faire!

*Artist Open Call*

World’s largest clothing swap!
May 18 & 19, 2013
All day San Mateo Event Center, San Mateo, CA
Contact: Erin Scholl  mailto:erinescholl @gmail.com  (erinescholl @gmail.com)  

Join in the communal process of reuse and celebrate our collective creativity! You are invited to participate in Swap-O-Rama-Rama as staff. Swap-O-Rama-Rama is a giant clothing swap and series of do-it-yourself workshops in which a community explores reuse and creativity through the recycling of used clothing. At Swap-O-Rama-Rama, consumers are taught to be creators. This transformation takes place with the help of local talent in the community. (That’s YOU!)

Swap-O-Rama-Rama is seeking textile artists of all calibers, recyclers and creatives of all kinds for the following roles:

DIY Workshops: If you have a unique project or technique that transforms would be trash into a wearable item, or mods a wearable item into a new form (clothing/jewelry/handbag etc.) please consider bringing this to Swap-O-Rama-Rama as a DIY workshop. Small $tipend for sharing your creative skills.

BRAF Grantee Swap-o-rama. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Sewing Gurus: If you’re a whiz behind a sewing machine and work with reuse, consider being a Swap-O-Rama-Rama designer/teacher. You will guide people learning how to mod the clothing they find at the swap. Small $tipend for sharing your creative skills.

Fashion Show: Present your refound|reinvented|remade creations in the Swap-O-Rama-Rama fashion show and sell them in our boutique!

Textile Lounge Presentations: If you have something to say about reuse and/or fashion, wish to join a lively moderated talk, or have a presentation about a technique, method, or concept, sign up for a spot in our Textile Talk Lounge located at Swap-O-Rama-Rama.

Art Installations: Let us showcase your reuse and/or textile related art as setting for our event. At least 1,000 people will pass through and you are welcome to promote yourself and your art.

Boutique Manager & Staff: Get involved in community reuse by peddling some good stuff made and remade by our artists. Small stipend plus commission.

Sorters and general help: If you know pants from a shirt, you can sort clothing! No creative inclinations required, you get first dibs on clothes!!

• Bike Bridge Opening Reception
• Raygun Gothic Rocketship “Launch” Party
• Partner Organization News:
  • The Bay Lights light up!
  • Maker Faire 2013 – Call for entries
  • The Exploratorium – Call for volunteers
• Grantee Updates:
  • The Pool - Update
  • Wind Playground - Update and call for participation
  • Rebar – Call for participation
  • Global Lives Project - Update and call for entries
  • Mediate – Call for participation

Bike Bridge Opening Event Delayed until April 5th or 6th.

The Black Rock Arts Foundation is very excited to share the remarkable result of the Bike Bridge project with the community in Oakland.  As planned, we will install the piece at the Uptown Art Park at 19th and Telegraph.  Installation of the piece will proceed on schedule however the park itself and some of the other sculptures will not be completed until March 21st.  As a result the City of Oakland has delayed the opening reception for the new art park until Friday, April 5th or Saturday April 6^th, there will be no event on Friday, March 1^st. Nonetheless, this fantastic piece will be on display for everyone to enjoy! Stay tuned for more information about the April opening event.

Blast Off! The Raygun Gothic Rocketship Prepares for Countdown…

INCOMING TRANSMISSION! This just in from the Rocketship crew:

The Phenomenauts at the Opening Reception for the Raygun Gothic Rocketship. Photo by Extramatic.

*No refunds in the event you disappear. Proceeds from the sale of personal effects will be donated to Earth local hosts, the Black Rock Arts Foundation, to pay off the RGR crew’s exorbitant bar tab.

Get involved with some of our partner organizations!

The Bay Lights Grand Lighting Event

Are you as excited about this project as we are? This massive achievement by BRAF Advisory Board Member Leo Villareal debuts Tuesday, March 5th. We recommend finding a good viewing spot along San Francisco’s waterfront in time for the 9:00 pm lighting ceremony. Come celebrate our community’s artists and this milestone in public art!

More about the project at thebaylights.org

The Exploratorium Needs Help on March 10^th

Our friends at The Exploratorium, San Francisco’s museum of science, art, and human perception, need a hand. They are calling for volunteers to help with On The Move, an outdoor festival featuring not only their exhibits and activities but also some of our favorite art cars!

Festivities will be held just across from Pier 15 on the waterfront and at satellite locations in Bayview and the Mission District in San Francisco on March 10^th from 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

To volunteer, call (415) 528-4360 or visit http://www.exploratorium.edu/visit/calendar/on-the-move

Get Ready for Maker Faire!

Calling all creators, tinkerers, performers, presenters, and dreamers!  Maker Faire Bay Area 2013 has put out a call to showcase makers of all types this coming May.

For details on how to participate visit makerfaire.com/bayarea-2013-callformakers

Deadline is March 15!

Third Friday Night Lights

Catch the spirit of the Bay Lights project and participate in the new Third Friday Night Lights event. Starting March 15, and every third Friday after that during the Bay Lights’ two year exhibition, don your blinkiest and brightest get up, bring your bikes and your friends and come out to the new Third Friday Night Lights event!

For more details visit: 3fnl.org

Grantee Updates

2012 Grantee – The Pool

Let there be light!  The Pool is in its last few days of development and will be complete in a few days.  John Taylor and Joe Martin from Lumigeek are currently in Boulder, Colorado, at the Jen Lewin Studio putting the final touches on the interface and video control for our miles of L.E.D. strip and 120 interactive platforms.

The Pool – work in progress. Photos courtesy of the artist.

The Pool will start its spring tour at South By Southwest in Austin’s Republic Square Park from March 9th – 16th.  It will return to Colorado and be installed at the new CU Art Museum from May 31st – September 5th.  Due to high demand, they are also building a second version of The Pool that will travel to the Electric Daisy Festival in New York, Chicago, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles, as well as to a large pubic exhibit at the University of Arkansas in September.

For more information visit www.jenlewinstudio.com.

2011 Grantee – Wind Playground

Wind Playground is preparing for a trip to Australia!  This kinetic sculpture that allows people to play with and understand wind is almost ready for its big debut.

Artist Maia Marinelli works on Wind Playground at her ‘studio’ in Maui, HI. Photo courtesy of the artist.

See photos and watch video of this project taking shape at www.windplayground.com.

This project also needs volunteers! Lend a hand.

2007 Grantee – Rebar

Help design the future of downtown Oakland!  Rebar and the City of Oakland are hosting a community workshop towards the design of a new temporary public plaza downtown at Latham Square. All members of the community are welcome and no design experience is required.

Saturday, February 23, 2013
12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Presentations from 12:00 p.m. – 1:15 p.m.
Drop-in workshops from 1:15 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Ground Floor, Cathedral Building at Broadway and Telegraph Ave, Oakland, CA

For more details visit www.facebook.com/events/271855542944544/.

Can’t make the workshop? Share your thoughts on what Latham Square needs by visiting www.oaklandnet.com/LathamSquare and contacting lathamsquare @gmail.com  (lathamsquare @gmail.com)  .

2007 Grantee – Global Lives Project

The Global Lives Project is seeking filmmakers in all parts of the world to contribute to its second curated series of ten 24-hour films, Lives in Transit.

Lives in Transit will document 24 continuous hours in the lives of individuals around who work in the transportation sector. From bus drivers and ticket collectors to water taxi drivers, from cycle rickshaw peddlers and pilots to shepherds and train conductors, Lives in Transit series will build on their growing video library of life experience on earth.

The Global Lives production crew in action. Photo courtesy of the artist.

For more information and to submit an inquiry please visit globallives.org/participate/livesintransit/call-for-filmmakers/

2010 Grantee –  Mediate (Illuminated Forest)

Listen and Mediate…

Mediate Art Group, the presenters of San Francisco’s acclaimed biennial festival Soundwave, is growing and looking for some talented folks to fill some cool new shoes. Get involved with this growing organization!

For more information on positions available at Mediate visit www.me-di-ate.net/volunteer-opportunities/

Thanks to eggchairsteve for graphic design, and Jared Gutekunst for logo design!

• Bike Bridge Opening Reception – Postponed – March 1
• Urbanauts - January 19
• Grantee Updates
  • Black Forest Fancies – Request for Proposals
  • The Pool
  • Before I Die…
  • The Global Lives Project
  • FIGMENT - Request for Proposals

Oakland’s Bike Bridge Opening Reception – Postponed

We’ve just received word from the City of Oakland that construction on the Uptown Merritt Art Park (the Bike Bridge installation site) has again been delayed.  As of now, the plan is for installation to take place in late February and for the opening reception to take place on Friday, March 1st.

The piece will be installed in the new art park on Telegraph Avenue between 19th and 20th Streets.

Again, thanks to all who supported this project.  Your support has ensured that the piece is complete and ready for installation.  We can’t wait to share it with the community, and we’ll be sure to keep you updated as we move forward.

Urbanauts and BRAF together at the de Young January 19th!

For decades, a particular brand of urban explorer has felt compelled to delve into the unseen and underground layers of city infrastructure. Guided by a sense of adventure and a desire for a broader understanding of the systems that support contemporary urban life, these explorations often reveal as much about the explorer as the territory explored. What is it about these unseen structures that so captures the imagination? Does this obscured geography map an unknown within us as well? What can the exploration teach us, a self-identified evolving species of surface dweller, about the various systems that make up our built and “natural” world? Can we hope to improve or recontextualize the interwoven social and ecological fabrics that make up our environment?

Grantee Updates

2011 Grantee – Black Forest Fancies (Lafcadio’s Revenge)

Here is a new design challenge for Artists and Architects!

Black Forest Fancies (BFF), a visual and stage arts 501c(3), is seeking proposals from individuals interested contributing architectural design services for a mobile artist residency project in New Orleans, Louisiana. This project consists of the structural redesign of an iron framed horse carriage into a mobile, malleable, water-tight enclosure that will be continually re-adapted by visiting installation artists as part of a artist residency program in New Orleans. The applicant is responsible for design only.  A team will execute construction.  In the past this carriage base has been adapted to become a mobile museum for art works from international and local artists. The successful proposal will not only include basic form, but suggestions for lighting, interior and exterior finishes, color, and creative use of locally sourced material.

The Black Rock Arts Foundation supported a similar Black Forest Fancies project in 2011, called Lafcadio’s Revenge.

2011 Grantee Lafcadio’s Revenge. Photo by Alleyn Evans.

For more information visit: www.blackforestfancies.com

 

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2012 Grantee – The Pool

The Pool by Jen Lewin is in its final phase of production.  Lewin’s team is currently wiring all 120 platforms for power, installing her custom PCB’s, and attaching over 1200 feet of LED strip within the platforms.  John Taylor and Joseph Martin from Lumigeek will arrive in Boulder on Feb 10th for final programming and interface ‘tweaks’.  There have been a few hiccups – mainly with sourcing some out of stock electronic items available only in China. However, these have been resolved and everything is on schedule for February completion.

For more information visit www.jenlewinstudio.com

 

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2011 Grantee – Before I Die…

In the past two months, Before I Die walls have gone up in over 20 cities, including Santiago, Chile, Auckland, New Zealand, Jiangsu, China, and San Francisco.

2011 Grantee Before I Die… Photo by Kristina Kassem

(photos attached, photos by Kristina Kassem).

See more photos at beforeidie.cc/site/blog/category/walls/

A new Before I Die wall will be going up in Washington DC on January 22, 2013, thanks to students at George Washington University. It will be outside the Gelman Library that borders Kogan Plaza at GWU. Candy Chang will speak at the unveiling.

Learn more at www.facebook.com/events/417504078308799/?fref=ts to get involved or share your aspirations on the wall!

 

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2007 Grantee – Global Lives Project

Congratulations to our 2007 Grantee, The Global Lives Project! The project has been awarded two major grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. BRAF awarded The Global Lives Project their first grant ever came from BRAF in 2007. We’re thrilled at how this project has grown and flourished!

2007 Grantee Global Lives, Japan screening.

Global Lives need your involvement and support. To read more about them, and to get involved, visit www.globallives.org.

 

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2008 Grantee – FIGMENT

FIGMENT NYC is seeking artists for the 2013 Minigolf Course & Interactive Sculpture Garden!

To Learn More About Submitting Proposals For The 2013 Minigolf Course & Interactive Sculpture Garden:

Please Join FIGMENT for their Summer-Long Information Session:

Monday, January 14, 2013, 7-9:00 pm
New York Design Center,
200 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY

*HIGHLY recommended for all applicants, especially for first-time applicants!

RSVP HERE

The FIGMENT crew eagerly awaits your awesome proposals for their two highly acclaimed, summer-long exhibitions. Your work will find a temporary home on Governors Island this summer, and will be on display from the FIGMENT NYC weekend event scheduled for early June, until September 22, 2013. Both exhibitions will be free and open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays while the island is open.

Deadline for the Sculpture Garden proposals is 11:59PM ET on February 1, 2013.
Artists can submit their fantasmagorical, highly interactive, and ultra-original FIGMENT Interactive Sculpture Garden proposals here.

Deadline for the FIGMENT Minigolf Course proposals is 11:59PM ET on March 1, 2013.

The theme for their sixth annual destination minigolf course is “State of the Art”—all yours to interpret! Can you translate your visionary ideas of what state of the art can be into a playable minigolf hole? If your design is selected for the course, FIGMENT will offer you a stipend of $250, in addition to the fabrication budget! Submit your design for minigolf right here.

2008 Grantee FIGMENT City of Dreams Mini Golf

Attend the information session to find out more about what makes a good FIGMENT project.  Hear firsthand testimonials and advice from FIGMENT summer-long curators, past artists, and other experts on the above topics and more. After an initial slideshow discussion and Q&A, prospective applicants will have the opportunity to speak individually with the curators and other presenters, for feedback on their preliminary proposals.

FIGMENT is also hosting their first “Meet and Greet” session of 2013 on January 21. Please join them to learn more about FIGMENT NYC and mingle with fellow artists and volunteers from all departments.

FIGMENT NYC First Meet and Greet of 2013!

Monday, January 21, 2013

7-10pm
Sidebar

120 East 15th Street New York, NY

Check out the Facebook Invite

Everyone is welcome! – From seasoned FIGMENT veterans to the participatory art-curious.

We at BRAF are celebrating all of the new ventures, inspiring projects and sensational events we produced and supported in 2012. Our goal is to bring free, accessible art experiences into everyday lives, so we hope you were able to experience these projects and events for yourself!

Maybe you see one of our Civic Arts projects, like Future’s Past or Portal of Evolution, on your way to work everyday. Or maybe your kids were involved with one of our grantee projects, like OmegaMart, Firefly Grove or FLOAT Beijing. And we hope you made it to our spectacular annual fundraising extravaganza, the Artumnal Gathering!

However you were able to participate in BRAF projects this year, we thank you for your ongoing involvement and support. Sharing the kind of art we love is what we do, and, with your support, we’ll be doing it for many years to come.

Read on for an overview of our accomplishments in 2012, and join us in supporting even more art together in 2013. Fan our flames for another year by making a tax-deductible year-end contribution, today!

Thanks to you, BRAF will keep growing, expanding and sharing more art with more communities, worldwide.

2012 Civic Art Projects

In 2012, we expanded our programming in Reno, Nevada, receiving not one but two grants from the City of Reno. One partially funded the installation of Bryan Tedrick’s Portal of Evolution, and the other Candy Chang’s Before I Die…, both in downtown Reno.

Portal of Evolution

On June 26, 2012, the Black Rock Arts Foundation installed our fifth public art installation in Reno, Nevada. Portal of Evolution by artist Bryan Tedrick was erected on a newly installed concrete pad in downtown Reno’s City Plaza. This pad was engineered and built by the City of Reno specifically to accommodate temporary sculpture installations.

Portal of Evolution in Reno, Nevada. Photo by Mark Hammon.

The base of Portal of Evolution is a cocoon-like enclosure, large enough for several people to stand in. Organic, floral shapes sprout from the base, crowned by a massive, delicate butterfly, which revolves slowly in the wind. The sculpture was first displayed at Burning Man in 2009. Its overall dimensions are 26′ tall x 32′ wide.

With the support of Councilman and BRAF Board Member David Aiazzi, and the City of Reno’s Engineering and Building Departments, we were able to install Portal of Evolution in downtown Reno’s City Plaza in time for the Artown festivities. In the last four years, BRAF’s art installations on the Riverwalk, in downtown Reno, have included performances by local artists and workshops hosted by local non-profit organizations. We were fortunate to be able to continue this tradition, and partnered with the fire-dance troupe, Controlled Burn, who featured the sculpture at their fire festival, Compression on July 28, 2012. The sculpture provided a dramatic and thematic backdrop to the Burning Man-style fire performances. The estimated audience for the event was 5,000-6,000 attendees.

A crew of 5 volunteers installed Portal of Evolution in four days. Local businesses and foundations the Hawkins Foundation, Reno Burners LLC, and Fernley Electric helped with the additional costs of installation. The sculpture has received press by all three major television stations, the Reno Gazette Journal and by additional Internet and independent TV programs.

Before I Die

On May 15, 2012 we installed our sixth public art piece in Reno, a special civic, interactive art project in two locations. Before I Die… transformed two of the city’s neglected spaces into constructive venues for reflection where residents and visitors shared their most intimate aspirations in public. One of the murals was located on the empty lot where BRAF had previously installed sculptures, on the corner of Island Avenue and Sierra Street. The second wall was installed on Fourth Street, a block away from St. Vincent’s Food Pantry, where many homeless people go for food and resources. The result was a social activity that sparked both introspection and conversation, bringing people together and producing a remarkable portrait of the community’s feelings and values at that moment in history.

Using newly constructed temporary walls, Candy Chang and her collaborators covered them with chalkboard paint, and stenciled them with the prompt “Before I Die I want to __________” dozens of times. Ample chalk was left attached to each wall for people to use, revealing their individual hopes or dreams to the public. The walls were cleaned and additional chalk added on a bi-weekly basis.

The walls collected thousands of responses from Reno residents and visitors over the lifespan of the project. Within a matter of days, each wall was completely full of poignant responses. Before being washed down to allow more people to participate, Mark Hammon photographed them to preserve a record of the community’s creativity.

To inaugurate the Before I Die in Reno project, Candy Chang gave a lecture at the Nevada Museum of Art, in collaboration with BRAF and the Black Rock Design Institute about her work, her life experiences, and the meaning of the Before I Die project.

Future’s Past

This year, we deepened our ongoing collaboration with the Hayes Valley Arts Coalition (HVAC), working with them to select a work of art that reflected the vibrancy of character of the Hayes Valley neighborhood. Kate Raudenbush’s Future’s Past was selected. BRAF looks forward to working with HVAC, again!

Future’s Past at Patricia’s Green, San Francisco, California. Photo by George Post.

Together, BRAF and HVAC raised the funds needed to install the work and to improve the installation site, making it ready to host more works of art in the future. Most notably, we worked with the San Francisco Parks and Recreation to install electricity to the site. As with many sculptures we work with, Future’s Past’s lighting effects are integral to the work’s overall impact and aesthetic. This site improvement was critical to our ability to showcase this sculptures and others of equal caliber.

The community received the sculpture warmly. The artwork drew the attention of art enthusiasts, photographers and the general public. On any given day, one may observe residents, professionals and tourists spending time in the park and enjoying the sculpture.

Big Art for Small Towns

In 2012, BRAF launched our new initiative, Big Art for Small Towns. In collaboration with the Burning Man Project, this project was awareded our second National Endowment for the Arts grant, an Our Town grant, in the amount of $75,000.

Over the next two years, two pieces of large-scale sculpture will be installed in a new city-owned park in Fernley. One of the artworks will be an existing piece of sculpture, selected by the Fernley community for temporary display in the park.

The second artwork will be an original piece created by local residents working with a competitively selected lead artist to reflect Fernley’s character, heritage, and culture.

Programming includes a series of public lectures, workshops, and youth learning opportunities focused on the community-building benefits of public art. Big Art for Small Towns is a component of the Black Rock Arts Foundation’s Civic Arts Program, which seeks to share the cultural and economic benefit of public art with rural towns in Nevada and beyond.

Production of the project’s first sculpture starts in the New Year, and will debut in Fernley Nevada in July of 2013. Stay tuned for further announcements and updates about this exciting new projects progress.

Bike Bridge

The Bike Bridge was a collaboration with 12 young women from Oakland schools, artist Michael Christian (well known for his large scale metal works displayed at Burning Man,) and with partner organization The Crucible. It was for this project that BRAF received our first grant, in the amount of $10,000, from the National Endowment for the Arts.

At The Crucible, the young women took courses in MIG welding and in art-bike creation. These courses imparted the skills needed to undertake the creation of a large-scale work of art. Under the mentorship of artist Michael Christian, the youth designed and fabricated a sculpture using reclaimed bicycle parts. The entire process was incredibly collaborative and the results are inspiring!

The Bike Bridge succeeded in bringing together youth, living in different areas of Oakland and attending different high schools, in a shared experience of cooperation, collaboration and mutual support of creative expression.

Through this project, the Black Rock Arts Foundation and The Crucible were able to advance the shared goals of creating innovative arts education opportunities for young people. Both BRAF and The Crucible highly value the collaborative process as means of empowering individuals and thereby strengthening communities. The youth involved learned both the technical and interpersonal skills needed to create a large-scale work of sculpture.

Stay tuned for the announcement of the Opening Reception!

The Raygun Gothic Rocketship and Bliss Dance

The exhibitions of both the Raygun Gothic Rocketship, by Sean Orlando, Nathaniel Taylor, David Shulman, Alan Rorie and their talented crew, and Bliss Dance, by Marco Cochrane, were extended by the San Francisco Port Authority and the Treasure Island Development Authority, respectively. BRAF is thrilled that the community and City agencies shares our appreciation and affection for these pieces.

The Raygun Gothic Rocketship, originally scheduled for de-installation in August of 2011, was granted several extensions of its stay. It now has a confirmed departure date of March, 2013. Stay tuned for announcements of a closing reception festivities.

Bliss Dance continues to garner attention of tourists and locals, and has served as an appreciated attraction on Treasure Island. The artists are currently raising funds to restore the sculpture, as it has suffered some rust damage. The funds will be used to treat the stainless steel surface for rust and to replace and improve the lighting components.

Events

ArtPadSF

ArtPadSF, a new and provocative 21st century boutique art fair, invites San Francisco’s world-renowned museums, galleries, arts institutions, and artists to transform the Phoenix Hotel into an alternative venue for art. The hotel is reinvented as a vibrant and visionary community of celebrated local and international artists.

Dance performance at BRAF’s evening at ArtPadSF.

To punctuate this innovative weekend-long faire, the Black Rock Arts Foundation and ArtPadSF once again co-produced a spectacular evening of performance art, fashion, dance, music and immersive art experiences on Friday, May 18, 2012. This unique event celebrated the wealth of local talent in the Bay Area, and raises funds to benefit the BRAF’s public art and grant programs. The event is a festive gathering of BRAF’s community of supporters, Burning Man’s art lovers, and the bay area’s leading art galleries and art scene.

The Artumnal Gathering

Our extremely popular and anticipated annual event, the Artumnal Gathering, features interactive art experiences, original works of art, performances, a gallery and an auction of art by over 100 participating artists and performers. This event serves as both a fundraiser for BRAF, and as a showcase and celebration of our community’s artists.

The Main Hall of the Bently Reserve at the Artumnal Gathering 2012. Photo by Tyler Nguyen.

This year, the event was held on December 1, 2012, at the magnificent Bently Reserve. Over 150 volunteers joined together to produce our most lively Artumnal Gathering yet. Once again, the pre-event dinner sold out. A total of 1,100 guests joined us in celebration of our artists and projects. The event has become an annual tradition for our community of supporters who look forward to donning their finest attire, seeing dear friends and fellow BRAF supporters and enjoying the many spectacles of this extravagant evening.

Below are just a few of the many fabulous photos of the event. To see more fabulous photos of Artumnal visit:

• Photos by Eric Schwabel
• Photos by George Post
• Photos by Meddling Melanie Photography
• Photos by Tyler Nguyen

Grants to Artists Program

Through our Grants to Artists program, we awarded $60,000 to projects in Quinto, Ecuador; Christchurch, New Zealand; Beijing, China; Warwick, RI; San Francisco, CA; Philadelphia, PA; Bakersfield, CA; Kiev, Ukraine; Santa Fe, NM; Guadalajara, Mexico; London, England; and Boulder, CO.

BRAF is widely appreciated for funding projects that prioritize community involvement in the development and execution. BRAF grantee projects serve communities not only by exposing them to groundbreaking, outstanding artwork, but also by soliciting the community’s input and involvement. By inviting community participation at all stages of the artworks’ creation and display, these projects engender stewardship of and personal relationships with works of art.

Some of our grantee projects take several years to complete, but some, like OmegaMart, Firefly Grove, New Bionics and Perspectives, have already completed their projects.

Here’s what some of our grantees say about our grant process:

“My interaction with Black Rock Arts Foundation was entirely dreamy. Honestly, I wish all fundings could be this supportive, easy, and relaxed. I felt a sense of community and comradery from the moment of being granted the funds, all the way though the run of the project, and continually beyond. Invitations for other projects, other open calls for work, and a sense
of ‘representation’ makes the relationship with BRAF something more than just a check.”

 

“The foundation’s grant process is a real pleasure. The contracts are clear and the process without problems. I am very happy that BRAF stays in touch with their artists and presents the artists’ milestones and the final work to the BRAF audience regularly. I am also pleased that BRAF has offered to help with positioning this and other works at additional sites. This was one request that I was planning to make recently but before I was able to do that, I was contacted by BRAF with the offer. I look forward to continue this rewarding relationship with BRAF.”

 

“I am so grateful for all the support from the Black Rock Arts Foundation. It is the only grant I have received for this project so far, and it has greatly helped in my ability to expand it.”

 

“This was my second time working with BRAF and am thrilled that there is a Foundation willing to support interactive, community engaged Public Art.  The process has been easy to navigate and the staff always extremely helpful.  We are grateful for the Foundation’s support which has been instrumental in advancing our project and bringing it to a larger audience. ”

 

“The Black Rock Arts Foundation’s grant process has been a tremendous education to us.  As first-time grant writers and recipients, we have no prior experience by which to compare it, but the openness, support and mission of the foundation has facilitated our growth as artists in unexpected ways.  Having the foundation’s support meant we could try something we would not have otherwise.”

 

“The Black Rock Arts Foundation is a wonderful example of the progressive spirit prevalent in places like the Bay Area.  Having just returned from the Bay yesterday, I find myself thinking about how important organizations like BRAF are on a national level.”

Operations

The Black Rock Arts Foundation seeks to sustain the momentum of building support and growth, and to develop lasting partnerships. Our recent addition of eight new Board Members has further invigorated this momentum, and exciting new initiatives are underway. Our new Board Members are Dave Aiazzi, Amber Marie Bently, Breanna DeGeere, Tracy Ericson, Christina Pettigrew, Jeremy Sugerman, and Warren Trezevant

Our continuing BRAF Board Members are Alix Rosenthal, Crimson Rose, Freddy Hahne, Harley K. Dubois, John Mueller, Larry Harvey, Mark Sinclair, Nick Morgan, Rachel Carpenter, Terry Gross, and Will Roger Peterson.

Thus far, BRAF’s impressive catalog of projects has been managed by BRAF’s three full time staff members. BRAF also has a very active and engaged Advisory Board and crew of volunteers who contribute to the direction and execution of our projects.

BRAF is a financially sound, growing non-profit that has increased its net assets steadily for the last six years. BRAF is currently operating at a surplus and is responsibly managed – over 70% of expenses are directly program related. BRAF has no long-term liabilities and substantial cash reserves. The Foundation received its first audit in the spring of 2012.

Future

In our eleventh year, BRAF enjoys recognition for our unique contributions to communities. As our visibility and esteem increases, numerous opportunities for new projects and ventures present themselves. Our potential for growth is tremendous, but can only be met with sufficient resources.

Our goal is to sustain the momentum of building support, growth, and collaboration we’ve enjoyed, and to build lasting partnerships in communities. We seek to replicate our successful models of programming in other areas of the country, and to set a standard of community collaboration in public art.

In 2013, we will support even more public more public art projects in other urban and rural cities. Through our Grants to Artists program, we will encourage community transformation and personal empowerment by supporting projects that connect people in new and meaningful ways.

BRAF supports artists who are breaking the mold of the current expectations of public art, pushing perceived boundaries in form as well as cultural function. We endeavor to establish a new standard that can be shared around the world – an expectation of community collaboration in public art – and to empower individuals to manifest art in their own communities.

In this Issue:

• Urbanauts Event- Save the Date!
• Bike Bridge Opening Reception – Save the Date!
• Raygun Gothic Rocketship – Delayed Departure
• The Artumnal Gathering – Photos and more!
• Grantee Update

Don’t forget to make your tax-deductible end-of-year gift to BRAF! With your help, we’ll enjoy another year of inspiring art projects!

Urbanauts and BRAF together at the de Young January 19th!

Unseen and underground, there are mysterious layers of city infrastructure under our feet. What is it about these hidden structures that so capture the imagination? Find out January 19, 2013 as BRAF, the de Young Museum, and de Young Artist Fellows Sean Orlando and REBAR offer an afternoon of conversation and multimedia presentations to investigate this question and the contemporary practice of urban exploration.  The event will take place at the Koret Theater at the de Young Museum in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park.

Event times and more details TBA, stay tuned!

Oakland’s Bike Bridge Presented to the World March 1st!

The Bike Bridge is ready for its big debut!  The piece will be installed in the new art park on Telegraph Avenue between 19th and 20th Streets.  Join us for an opening reception at the park during Art Murmur, March 1, 2013, in downtown Oakland. Come celebrate this great accomplishment of the talented young Bike Bridge artists!

One of the Bike Bridge youth artists.

Get Ready for Liftoff! The Raygun Gothic Rocketship’s Delayed Departure

The Commissioners of the Port of San Francisco met in session on Tuesday October 23rd, and approved another extension for the Rocketship at Pier 14. Receiving this good news, the Raygun Rocketship crew has re-scheduled their departure to the Centauri system until March 7, 2013.

There is still space available for the trip, which will take approximately 6.5 months (relative) ship time. Potential passengers should note that we will be carrying a small quantity of cantobtanium, which by its odd quantum nature (you think it exists but can never find it), can make some people nauseous, and others simply disappear (No refunds in the event you disappear).

We will be sure to keep you informed of the Rocketship’s departure details, as, no doubt, there will be a pre-departure send-off party.

The Artumnal Gathering: Thank YOU!

We are deeply grateful for all who contributed in making this our best Artumnal Gathering ever. Thank you to all who attended, participated and donated their time and effort.

First of all, we’d like to thank our 150 volunteers, some of whom worked all through the day, night and morning. This year we started a new tradition: The Affinity award, named after our beloved volunteer of many years, Affinity Mingle. In years to come, this award will be granted to our stellar, above-and-beyond volunteers. Check out Affinity’s post about receiving the award in her blog Affatshionista.

In addition, the Artumnal Gathering offered a terrific sampling of the tremendous talent of our community. We’d like to thank the 100+ entertainers who donated their time, talent, and effort to Saturday’s gala. We are so grateful to have you in our midst!

We also owe many, many heartfelt thanks to all the artists who contributed their talent and work to the event and the auction.  We especially want to thank the artists we work with throughout the year. This event is for you, a celebration in honor of your creativity and your contributions. Thank you!

And last but not least, we want to express our deepest appreciation and thanks to all of the BRAF supporters who joined us for this special evening in support of our mission.

We hope you were able to join us. If not, we hope to see you next year!

• Photos by Eric Schwabel
• Photos by George Post
• Photos by Meddling Melanie Photography
• Photos by Tyler Nguyen

Photo of Affinity, 2012 Recipient of the Affinity Award. Photo by Eric Schwabel
Painting, “The Parallax of Drive and Desire” by Nicholas Von Grainger

“Ascension” by Gregg Flieshmann, artist of the Otic Oasis at Burning Man 2011 and 2012. Photo by George Post.

The Loyd Family Players at the Artumnal Gathering, 2012. Photo by Tyler Nguyen.

The Main Hall of the Bently Reserve at the Artumnal Gathering 2012. Photo by Tyler Nguyen.

Grantee Update

2012 Grantee – The Pool by Jen Lewin

All 120 new rotationally molded Pool platforms arrived at the Jen Lewin Studio from their production factory in LA. Lewin’s team also just ran their final tests on the new controller LED boards. Unlike their originall version, these new boards will use a point controlled LED strip that is almost six times brighter, as well as three custom accelerometer circuits for a much cleaner and intuitive interface. By late December, Lewin will have all of the complete parts for The Pool, and will start bringing everything together. The Pool is currently on track for completion in early February.

The Black Rock Arts Foundation, a 501(c)3 organization, is currently interviewing for a Social Media Superstar to join our team! This is a great opportunity to learn social media marketing and the non-profit sector while working on a specific project and developing key skills that will be very marketable for college students looking for their first real job or recent grads looking to expand their resume.

Position Description

You will be responsible for working with BRAF staff to get the word out about BRAF’s wonderful projects, events and programs through a variety of social media channels. Hands on learning opportunities will cover the tasks of project management, outreach, community building, commenting, bookmarking, engaging in and monitoring conversations, link building, and post scheduling.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal volunteer will have experience very good knowledge of various social networking & social media websites. Business, journalism, or communications major would be ideal but we encourage all others apply. Knowledge of non-profit development, marketing, biz development,  or experience in the media industry also a plus. You must also possess the following attributes:

• A self starter, able to work on your own with a given set of instructions
• Have the ability to be flexible, self-sufficient and a team player
• Must have exceptional traditional writing and grammatical skills and a flair for using “social networking speak” and online jargon
• Technically savvy with social media site functionality
• Strong verbal communication skills
• Outstanding attention to details
• Strong organizational and time-management skills and able to meet deadlines
• Positive attitude, highly self-motivated, self-sufficient, and confident
• Excellent computer skills: Preferably mac. Must be very comfortable with all Microsoft applications, including Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint
• Able to attend our Communications Committee meetings every second Monday of the month, at 3pm
• Able to work in our office in San Francisco three hours a week.

Process

Please email a resume and brief statement of why you’re interested in the position to volunteer @blackrockarts.org  (volunteer @blackrockarts.org)   by November 20, 2012. Position to begin in early December (negotiable.)

• The Artumnal Gathering – Buy tickets today!
• Letters of Interest now accepted for 2013 BRAF Grants
• Sean Orlando, REBAR and BRAF present: Urbanauts
• 5 Ton Crane exhibit
• Star Seed by Kate Raudenbush in San Francisco!
• Grantee Updates

Artwork by Andrew Jones

Do you have your tickets yet? Don’t miss our annual gala event! Don your most extravagant and imaginative attire and mix, mingle, and dance in the exquisitely elegant atmosphere of the Bently Reserve. Gather with your friends and fellow BRAF supporters to celebrate our community’s visionary artists, and support BRAF’s future initiatives. Join us!

Buy tickets now!

The Artumnal Gathering
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Dinner 6:00 p.m. Main Event 9:30 p.m.

The Bently Reserve
400 Sansome St.
San Francisco, CA 94111

Enjoy epicurean delights, tempting libations, tantalizing treats, wondrous pleasures, captivating performances, three elegant rooms of music and DJ’s, original artwork by our favorite artists, a live and silent auction featuring exclusive experiences and items, and abundant expressions of creativity!

Ticket Packages (All tickets are 21 and over.)

Artumnal Celebration - 9:30 pm – Late

• $40 online presale first tier
• $45 second tier on sale now and will sell out!
• $50 third tier online and at door, if tickets don’t sell out! Don’t wait to buy!

Includes an evening of featured and roaming performances, DJs, dancing, raffle, silent auction, art sale, and delightful surprises.

Feast of Imagination - 6:00 pm – Late

• $250 advance purchase only

Includes an individual seat for a sumptuous dinner, auction, performances, wine, dessert, and entry to the Artumnal Celebration.

Table of Plenty: A Table for 8 at Feast of Imagination – 6:00 pm – Late

• $3,000 advance purchase only

Includes a reserved table for eight guests for the Feast of Imagination dinner.

Table of Abundance: A Table for 8 at Feast of Imagination, with premium placement - 6:00 pm – Late

• $5,000 advance purchase only

Includes a reserved table for eight guests for the Feast of Imagination, with premium seating placement in the banquet hall, premium wine selection and other treats.

Table of Jubilation: A Table for 8 at Feast of Imagination, with premium placement - 6:00 pm – Late

• $10,000 advance purchase only

Includes a reserved table for eight guests for the Feast of Imagination, with premium seating placement in the banquet hall, premium wine selection and other treats.

To purchase tickets, visit blackrockarts.org/artumnal See you there!

 

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Letter of Inquiries now accepted for BRAF 2013 Grants

BRAF is now accepting Letters of Inquiry (LOI’s) for our 2013 Grant Cycle. Read more about our grants criteria and instructions on how to apply.

BRAF funds year-round community-driven art projects all over the world. BRAF’s grantee projects break the mold of public art, blur the lines between artist and audience, and actively engage their communities in the creative process. We fund highly interactive art projects that are accessible to, integrated with and for the benefit of their community.Does this sound like your artwork? Apply for a BRAF Grant!Full proposals for BRAF’s grants are received by invitation only. To be considered for invitation, submit a Letter of Inquiry.

To see if your project qualifies for a BRAF grant read our grant criteria, full grant timeline and application instructions.

We can’t wait to hear about your project!

 

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Urbanauts

Sean Orlando and REBAR Fellowship at the De Young

Sean Orlando, one of the artists of the absolutely mythic Raygun Gothic Rocketship, has teamed up with 2007 BRAF Grantees REBAR for an exciting new project at the De Young Museum. BRAF is proud to be a collaborating partner in this fellowship.

Photo courtesy of REBAR

Works in progress / Gallery exhibition
October 3-29, 2012
Wednesdays – Sundays 1:00-5:00 p.m. and Fridays until 8:30 p.m.
Kimball Gallery
50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive
San Francisco, CA

Join the artists at the Opening Reception
Friday, October 26, 2012, 6:00-8:30 p.m.
Kimball Gallery
50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive
San Francisco, CA

We’ll keep you posted of a series of more events and art openings that will last until Spring of 2014!

 

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5 Ton Crane Arts Group Exhibition at the SFMOMA Artist Gallery

Members of the Oakland-based collaborative 5 Ton Crane, creators of the iconic public art installation Raygun Gothic Rocket Ship on San Francisco’s Embarcadero, compose a series of large-scale, multimedia artworks representing various urban locations in Oakland

Oakland²

September 22, 2012 – June 1, 2013
SFMOMA Artist Gallery
147 Minna and 150 Natoma Streets
San Francisco, CA

Check out photos from the opening reception. 

 

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Star Seed by Kate Raudenbush in San Francisco!

p Star Seed and sunset visitors ©Kate Raudenbush 2012

BRAF artist Kate Raudenbush will be showing the top half of this year’s 40 -foot tall Burning Man sculpture, Star Seed, on Halloween weekend in San Francisco. It will be shown at the epic Halloween Party “Ghostship” on Treasure Island on October 27.

It will be re-set on 7 foot tall steel legs with only 4 steps to climb, so for those of you who did not have the stomach to climb the 22-foot high roots in the desert, here is another opportunity to lounge in the bower of the seed!

 

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GRANTEE UPDATES

2012 Grantee - Symphony in D Minor Opening Reception

An interactive sound and video installation on an EPIC scale, Symphony in D Minor is premiering at the Skybox, a seven thousand square foot public arts space in Philadelphia. Acting as both conductors and musicians, viewers will unleash thunderstorms in an evolving composition enveloping the audience!

Opening Reception
Saturday October 20th, 7-10pm
Skybox Gallery
2424 East York Street
Philadelphia, PA 19125

For details visit:

www.symphonyindminor.com
 

2012 Grantee – Firefly Grove now on display

Providence Ballet Theatre’s Youth Ballet Company performing the “Dance of the Fireflies”.

Come see the wonderful interactive light and sound art work that mimics the fireflies’ illumination patterns. The project addresses the commonly heard statement of “where have all the fireflies gone.” The public art work which reminds people of the magical presence of the firefly and its loss due to light pollution can be seen through April 2013 at the John Brown House Museum’s courtyard. At the opening on September 20th we were excited to have the performance of the Providence Ballet Theatre’s Youth Ballet Company performing the Dance of the Fireflies.

John Brown House Museum
52 Power Street

Providence, RI

Open through April 2013

For more information visit theengineinstitute.org/events/firefly-grove

 

2012 Grantee – The Pool

The Pool is in full swing.  The project now has a complete rotational shell, and over 120 additional shells/platforms in current production. Artist Jen Lewin is working with John Taylor and LumiGeek on a new amazing power over data gaming system to add a level of interaction that was not possible in the original system. The project also has a new l.e.d. pixel controller that allows each interactive platform to animate in millions of individual colors, instead of just being a single color at any given time. The Pool is currently planning on being tested live in February of 2013. It will be on tour and exhibited starting in March 2013.

For more information visit: www.jenlewinstudio.com

 

2007 Grantee – Burning Baskets

Homer, Alaska: It was basket burning time again on Kachemak Bay. The ninth annual community interactive, impermanent art experience took place on September 17. Each year, under the direction of visual artist Mavis Muller, participants spend one week building a giant intricately woven “basket of remembrance and unburdening”, this year’s themed Inspire, using natural materials gathered from the local countryside.

Fireweed elementary students visit the Homer burning basket each year to join in creating organic art. This ground design was created with the bundles of grass, alder, nettles that will be woven into the walls of the big basket. Photo by Mavis Muller.

The sculpture is given as a gift to the community and all are invited to decorate it with flowers, art, and words to inspire, with personal sentiments tucked inside. At sundown, Inspire met its fiery conclusion dispersing messages & burdens into the night sky in sparks and flames, accompanied by drummers and fire spinners.

Inspire – Basket of Remembrance & Unburdening, Kachemak Bay, Homer, Alaska, September 17, 2012.

Mavis Muller will be traveling to Europe in November to participate with the Museum of Contemporary Art, Vigo, Spain, in their upcoming exhibition titled The Black Whale, (La Ballena Negra) which marks 10 years since Spain’s devastating oil spill. The exhibition will widen the panorama to include a large banner that Mavis painted in 1989 after the Exxon oil spill in Alaska.

Mavis will present a program, “Pubic Art as a Healing Force”, which documents the 2009 basket burning she facilitated in her hometown, Homer, Alaska at the 20 year mark after the Exxon oil spill in Alaska, for which Mavis created a large woven basket sculpture resembling a fractured heart titled “Re-member – Basket of Restoration & Reunion”. The public was invited to tie rainbow colored ribbons on the sculpture in a way to connect the two separate halves of the heart, which met it’s conclusion through fire with hundreds of people gathered. The interactive, impermanent art symbolized the healing of the collective fractured heart, fractured waters, land and livelihoods left in the wake of the Exxon oil spill. Mavis will co-ordinate a similar public art enactment for the community of Vigo, Spain.

She will then travel to Assisi, Italy where she will co-ordinate a basket burning to take place on December 12, 2012. For more information visit: www.mavismullerart.com.

 

We have art. We have a place to put it. We have 12 extraordinary young artists worth celebrating. All we need now is a few more dollars to make it happen!

By now you’ve heard of our project The Bike Bridge. We can’t say enough about this project, and it’s so close to becoming a reality. The City of Oakland has approved the installation of the sculpture in a new park on Telegraph Avenue, between 19th and 20th Streets, adjacent to the beautifully renovated Fox Theater.

This vacant lot will be the site of the Uptown Merritt Art Park, where we will install the Bike Bridge

We’re so close to making The Bike Bridge a reality. Make a pledge to the project’s new Kickstarter campaign and get cool special gifts! Every dollar helps!

Donate now!

About the project

The sculpture was created by 12 young women from Oakland schools, mentored by local artist Michael Christian, well known for his large scale metal works displayed at Burning Man. We partnered with The Crucible to teach the young women welding and art-bike creation. These courses imparted the skills needed to undertake the creation of a large-scale work of art. Working together, the youth designed and fabricated a sculpture using reclaimed bicycle parts. The entire process was incredibly collaborative and the results are inspiring!

Watch a great video about the young artists and their creation at www.youtube.com/blackrockarts

Why give?

Flock

For those of you who joined us in Black Rock City, you know that art has the potential to bring people together in the spirit of creativity, wonder and community pride. Help BRAF share the benefit of interactive art with the rest of the world.

Donate now and get cool new BRAF gifts!

• BRAF Stickers, T-Shirts and Hoodies.
• A limited edition signed print of Michael Christian’s Flock
• Your name on a plaque at the sculpture site!
• A tour of Bay Area artists’ studios for you and 25 friends on the fabulous art car, the Kazbus!

The Kazbus

These talented young artists deserve recognition. Thank you for joining us in celebration of their achievements!

Larry Harvey, founder of Burning Man and of the Black Rock Arts Foundation, speaking at 2011′s Artumnal Gathering. Photo by George Post.

The Black Rock Arts Foundation has much to celebrate this year. Please join us for this very special annual engagement in honor of our artists and in support of BRAF’s future endeavors.

Don’t miss this greatly anticipated gathering and fundraising event! Enjoy fine fare, tempting libations, special treats, surprises, captivating performances, original artwork by our favorite artists, auction featuring one of a kind experiences and items, and abundant creativity!

Saturday, December 1, 2012
The Bently Reserve
400 Sansome St.
San Francisco, CA 94111

Advanced tickets go on sale September 13^th!

• Limited number of first tier Main Event tickets: $40
• Second tier Main Event tickets: $45
• Third tier Main Event tickets: $50
• Individual Dinner tickets: $250
• Dinner tables for Eight: $3000 – $10,000

The Black Rock Arts Foundation is working with the City of Fernley to pilot an initiative called Big Art for Small Towns. Over the next two years, two pieces of large-scale sculpture will be installed in a new city-owned park in Fernley. One of the artworks will be an existing piece of sculpture, selected by the Fernley community for temporary display in the park. The second artwork will be an original piece created by local residents working with a competitively selected lead artist to reflect Fernley’s character, heritage, and culture. Programming includes a series of public lectures, workshops, and youth learning opportunities focused on the community-building benefits of public art. Big Art for Small Towns is a component of the Black Rock Arts Foundation’s Civic Arts Program, which seeks to share the cultural and economic benefit of public art with rural towns in Nevada and beyond.

“Cities and towns are transformed when you bring the arts – both literally and figuratively – into the center of them,” said NEA Chairman Landesman. “From Teller, Alaska to Miami, Florida, communities are pursuing creative placemaking, making their neighborhoods more vibrant and robust by investing in the performing, visual, and literary arts. I am proud to be partnering with these 80 communities and their respective arts, civic, and elected leaders.”

“We are proud to have been recognized by the NEA’s Our Town program, and believe that this innovative project will help bring the community together and stimulate much-needed economic growth in Fernley. If this program is as successful as we anticipate, we hope to replicate it in other small towns in Nevada and across rural America,” said BRAF Executive Director Tomas McCabe.

Through Our Town, the NEA supports creative placemaking projects that help transform communities into lively, beautiful, and sustainable places with the arts at their core. The grantee projects will improve quality of life, encourage creative activity, create community identity and a sense of place, and help revitalize local economies.

The NEA received 317 applications for Our Town. With only 80 grants emerging from the 317 applications, or a success rate of 25 percent, competition was strong, a testament to the artistic excellence and merit of the Black Rock Art Foundation’s Big Art for Small Towns program.

Please update your incoming RSS feed here.

In addition to a delicious aesthetic upgrade, the BRAF blog now features a jump such that you may peruse our many posts effortlessly. 

Some features of the new website include:

An interactive world map of all our projects.

A new-and-improved online donation system.

A new photo gallery we are in the process of flushing out. In time it will be the place to go for images of all our work like The Dreamer by Pepe Ozan.

The Dreamer, with artists Pepe Ozan.

We would like to thank everyone whose hard work and support made the
new site possible:

- Michael Barbarino, Silvia Stephenson, and Heather “CameraGirl”
Gallagher of the Burning Man Web Team.
- Christopher and Amber Marie Bently and the Bently Holdings web
team.
- The entire BRAF board, especially Freddy Hahne and Drea Lester for
their work on the site.
- Jared Gutekunst, Artist/Designer/BRAF Volunteer

Happy Exploring!