Buscycle
Matthew Mazzotta
Jamaica Plain, MA (and traveling)
Grant Amount: $5,000

The Buscycle is a 15 person 100% human-powered vehicle constructed from an 11 passenger Dodge van stripped to its chassis. The engine has been removed and replaced by 14 customized recumbent bicycles, one driver, and an elegant gearing system. The Buscycle is a traveling public art project that has been underway since Summer 2005; it has been built predominantly re-purposed materials and can be pedaled by anyone who is willing.

The Buscycle is now embarking on a series of rides, ‘U.S. Story Collecting Tour’, cross-country from Boston, MA to San Francisco, CA; the general public will be invited to pedal and stories will be collected after each ride. Test rides through the greater Boston area have already elicited hundreds of surprised, delighted and engaged responses. With a maximum speed of 10 miles an hour the Buscycle is not intended to replace cars or public transit, but rather to stir the imagination.

Visit www.busycle.com for more information on the Buscycle, to track their cross-country progress, or become involved.

Quadrapass
Paul Jorgenson
South Africa
Grant Amount: $6,700

Quadrapass is a 12’ to 16’ tall fire vessel constructed from a steel armature, and skinned with pieces of steel that have been scribed with symbols created by participants – this project is intended to be built by the community for the community. Workshops led by artists Charlie Smith and Jamie Ladet will provide participants with hands-on collaborative learning experience in both sculptural volume and form. Quadrapass will provide a vehicle through which artists in South Africa can collaborate and host workshops within local communities to create an Art Sculpture that will resonate with the people.

Quadrapass will be lit up at the 3-day festival, Africa Burns, July 20-22, 2007, after which it will be installed on a semi-permanent basis in a public location. Quadrapass will be created in much the same vein as Synapses – a collaborative fire vessel whose elements were built through hands on workshops led by Charlie Smith and Jamie Ladet in New York, Georgia, Texas, California and Washington states. All of these elements came together to form one fire sculpture that graced the playa throughout the 2005 Burning Man event. For more information on the Synapses Project, its vision and creative process, visit: www.howhowhow.com and click on {synapses project}.

Kay Morrisson of Ignition NW
Seattle, WA
Grant Amount: $3,300

By way of background, Central Park at Rainier Vista Housing Community was slated by the Seattle Housing Authority (SHA) to become the focal point of this newly renovated and diverse neighborhood. Due to unavoidable increases in infrastructure and construction, as well as an initial cost delay, SHA was unable to dedicate sufficient funds to complete the project. The fiscally abandoned Central Park, now wrapped in hurricane fencing, has been taken under the wing of Neighborhood House, which has joined with the landowner, SHA, and over 15 community and neighborhood groups to work to complete this project.

Ignition NW, a non-profit that was created to foster the Burning Man culture of radical self-expression, participatory art and sustainable community in the Pacific Northwest, will work with Neighborhood House to gather input, design and create public art for Central Park by engaging members of the Rainier Vista Community!

For more about the goings on in the Pacific Northwest: www.ignitionnw.org

Urban Art Garden
Angela Willetts
San Francisco, CA
Grant Amount: $5,000

The Urban Art Garden is a 250’ x 20’ art wall that incorporates 14 murals – 13 created by local artists, and one mural painted by local community members and children. Each mural is painted in an arched alcove. Surrounding the murals is a self-sustaining “living wall” of various plants, mainly grasses. The final wall is intended to serve as a communal outdoor gathering space, and additional programming will aim to educate children, local businesses and residents about environmental art and living architecture though hands-on workshops and presentations.

Through the creation of this living art wall Urban Art Garden will showcase the talents of local area and emerging artists, raise awareness of the social and spiritual benefits of creating art, and encourage communities to consider radical alternatives to artistic and urban conventions. This project initially began last October. Eight artists began their murals; however, because no funds were available no anti-graffiti sealant was applied and several of these murals were tagged beyond repair, and artists were unable to return to re-do their work due to prohibitive time and money constraints. For this reason, funding is now being sought and the project is moving forward.

To see images of several of the original murals before they were tagged: flickr.com/photos/factoryjoe/tags/urbanartgarden