Howdy! I'm an artist.

[D]MaxDown · Post by **[D]MaxDown** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 1:14 am

Greetings!

I heard about this event through social networking and absolutely CANNOT WAIT to participate. I've been browsing the website collecting information about what it takes to set up an exhibition.. Already the gears are spinning. I've got a number of ideas - all centered around live abstract expressionism. Think Jackson Pollock. HUGE canvas. I'm talking absurdly massive. Brushes of all shapes and sizes.. Hell, people can use themselves as brushes if the want to. Paint would be available.. Ideally. I'd have to secure a grant of some description, as this would be a massive undertaking. Worst case scenario would be to lay out 5-7 72"x6yard rolls and just have at 'em..

Interested?? Thoughts??

Post by **Sham** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 1:57 am

Welcome MD, that project sounds very cool. If I am imagining this correctly, would people be the paint brushes making the colors with their bodies? I can see all sorts of paint covered people all becoming the brushes.

Tell more about yourself. By the way, there is a huge burner community in Dallas (as well as Houston, but we don't talk about them).

Make yourself at home here and I look forward to watching your project develop.

[D]MaxDown · Post by **[D]MaxDown** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 4:21 am

Sure! That sounds like a blast.. for everyone. I envisioned more of the random passerby stopping in an grabbing a brush for a few strokes.. But I like how you're thinking.

Cool to hear that there is a huge community here! I had no idea..

Just graduated with a B.A. in Digital Arts & Design. I'm an Eagle scout, mountain man (3 NOLS courses under my belt), pursuer of limit, tester of boundaries. Plenty of scars. I love taking risks...

Post by **AntiM** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 6:42 am

Welcome! I love painting projects. Picasso Camp does something similar, but don't let that stop you. The more the merrier!

http://www.picassocamp.org/

I run Anti M's Home for Wayward Art, a chickenwire gallery where anyone can adopt art. Some of it is quite good, some of it is extremely awful, and some things strain the definition of art... but people take home what speaks to them. In a week, we move hundreds of pieces. Half the fun is talking to people who bring donations or are adopting. I hope you find us on the playa and say hello!

burner von braun · Post by **burner von braun** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 6:58 am

Hi [D]MaxDown, it sounds like Burning Man is right up your alley, 70% survival skills, 80% art, plus 85% fire, 90% new friends, and more! How can this add up to over 100%? ...

...that becomes very apparent by the end of the week!

..and I like your art idea. It sounds fun!

Post by **Elderberry** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 8:11 am

Hey there, welcome to eplaya!

JK

[D]MaxDown · Post by **[D]MaxDown** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 11:01 am

YES! Exactly. That's what I'm talking about =)

This being my first year, the logistics of it all are a bit overwhelming. I feel like my Eagle scout project has prepared me well to succeed in this respect, but there's still a ton of planning to do. Being your classic starving artist, I will need considerable financial help to realize my vision. What with the Feb 1 grant submission deadline approaching rapidly, there's quite a bit of work to do - and fast. I think for this first attempt, I will realistically need to scale it back to 3 - 5 canvases. Ideally, I would like to have supplies available for folks to be able to walk up and start slingin'. The way I paint requires the canvases to be laid flat on the ground.. and when you consider that I like painting on very large surfaces (4'x9'+), I would need some sort of structural protection from the elements.. plus lots of space to move around. Any suggestions from you weathered BM vets? Mechanically speaking.. How to secure & protect the canvases? What kind of structure would be sufficient? Would it need to be enclosed? Lighting? Where do I find massive amounts of paint for cheap? etc..

Thanks for your input! I'm very excited to participate!

knowmad · Post by **knowmad** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 11:19 am

Welcome to Eplaya Max.
There's a ton of good advice and Ideas in here, along with lots of helpful folks.
perhaps a good second stop is the "Tips and Tricks" threads in the Preparations section. and the An "Item a day for BM" is a good lace to begin a good practice of doing one small thing each day to make the whole "packing up" for TTITD (That Thing In The Desert)

Best of luck with your project, and hope to see you in the dust.

Post by **AntiM** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 12:34 pm

Just some random thoughts to chew on:
You could choose to do a daytime only project. Mine certainly is. Mine is also directly outside my camp, so I can "tend" it as often as I need/want. Mine is not funded, I scrape up what I can when I can. Not starving, just on a budget.

Funded implies placed, which means the open playa. Very different animal than art near a camp. You will need a way to corral the supplies, light it at night, and secure it from theft and the wind. Much more complicated. You could choose to request being near the Esplanade, so you can set up in the daytime and put it up at night. A dome is more camplike, and you would have to figure in people climbing on it.
As for securing a canvas to the ground: grommets in the corners/sides and landscaping nails. That's how I secure my groundcloth painting in camp. Unless you are using mounted canvases. (how would you transport them?)

I don't paint on the playa, too dusty, clean up is a bother, and I'm always distracted. You may end up resigning yourself to dust as part of the process. LOL, I bring dust home in bottles to use the rest of the year. (See, very loose on what's acceptable in my art; I'm not that good, just enthusiastic and prolific)

What will you do with the finished ones? Perhaps you can find a camp with a large structure where you can negotiate hanging the finished pieces for display?

Post by **Sham** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 12:59 pm

Imagine a 12'x12' frame made from 2x4's that has a canvas strethed over it. That canvas can be a heavy neutral fabric. You can make a footing/stand out of the same type of wood. You can have a section that people can paint on and then a day or so later, you can rotate the frame to allow another section to be painted, and you can do this until the entire artwork is finished. It can even be 2 sided. You can be creative and allow any body part to paint it--except your hands!
You can figure the lumber that you'll need ahead of time and pick up the supplies in Reno and then you have just a short trip to the playa. The canvas can be removed and saved, while the lumber can be donated or burned. There is nothing cheaper than 2x4's from Home Depot!

JStep · Post by **JStep** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 3:14 pm

Hi Max, welcome.

I don't know how you would overcome the elements to keep dust off of paint without spending a ton of cash, but good luck o you if you try it!

TomServo · Post by **TomServo** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 3:36 pm

I think the exposed canvas and paint would be personalized by the playa, with all the dust. You might consider large tarps under the canvas, to keep the playa from getting painted. Never shopped for paint, but I think craigslist free section would be a good starting place. Welcome to eplaya!

PLANO EAST PANTHERS!!

[D]MaxDown · Post by **[D]MaxDown** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 4:24 pm

AntiM - I think I would like your setup better than an open playa situation. I will certainly want to be able to tend the canvas as desired.. Does this mean I will need to request additional space near my camp? How and where do you go about requesting a specific location? Is there any way to know who / what will be around me when I get there? Thanks for your suggestions!

Shambala - I like your idea! When I was in school in Florida, I built myself a frame out of 2x4s for a 4'x9' canvas.. and was surprised to discover that sucker weighed close to 80 lbs once all the paint was on it. I wouldn't be at all surprised if a 12'x12' weighed over 200lbs, paint and all. I like the idea of rotating it every so often though. The painting would evolve with the festival! Thanks for the input!

Always welcome to more ideas! I'll keep posting as I make progress on the plan. I anticipate the festival eagerly =)

thisisthatwhichis · Post by **thisisthatwhichis** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 5:42 pm

OK, settle down.

The MOST IMPORTANT thing is read the survival guide, and ENJOY your first burn out there.

You can bring a canvas or two, but, go and see what it's all about first.... And Survive (it can be HARSH)...... Then you'll be better prepared for your next burn.......

And Welcome!

[D]MaxDown · Post by **[D]MaxDown** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 11:39 pm

Thisisthatwhichis - I'll be prepared alright. I appreciate your concern, but I'll be fine. Trust me. You don't get asked by a group of your NOLS peers to lead them through the Alaskan wilderness for nothing.

I've READ the guide, and I'm also an Eagle Scout. I WILL enjoy the burn. Even if I'm miserable, I'll enjoy the challenge of learning. The challenge is exactly what excites me. Your post encourages me to bring even more canvases, and larger ones.

I don't know about ya'll, but It's been my personal experience that when you are dealing with artists and their creative visions, you need to be careful how you.. 'suggest' things to them. You never know who they are or what they've been through to be where they are in life. Using caps lock and saying things like "You can bring a canvas or two" comes across as extremely condescending, and encourages the target into a less than agreeable state of mind. I understand that you may have the best of intentions, but with myself, as with many artists, HOW something is done is arguably more important than WHAT it actually is. The WAY in which something is done is the real focus - at least, that's what I believe. Process is king, my friend!

Post by **Sham** » Wed Jan 19, 2011 12:30 am

I think you may be taking the point that thisisthatwhichis was trying to make, the wrong way.
The point was, many first timers have the wrong misunderestimated* confusion about what they are going to experience on the playa. Some of these tasty young virgins want to jump in head first, but the sound, friendly advice given here is to gently step into the water and not jump face first.

It sounds like you know what you are up against, so this probably doesn't apply to you Max.

The biggest mistake I have seen, is the feeling that you need a big bag of trinkets to give out or trade for stuff. If I had a dime for every shitty plastic whistle from Oriental Trading, I have been offered by a first timer over the years, I would have a lot of dimes.

Thisisthatwhichis was trying to give you the best advice here and truly deserve a thanks for that.

*not a real word, but it should be.

teardropper · Post by **teardropper** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 12:48 am

Yeah, I'm kinda' with TITWI on this. I admire your enthusiasm and am sure you will do fine because you will prepare properly. But a lot of us are artists who have creative visions. Settle down a little bit. Nobody's trying to bum your burn. Go out on the playa, 'cause you have read about it, after all, and do your creative vision thing and while you're on ePlaya you can insult well meaning Burners. You know, those who actually have been on the playa.

I mean, you are probably way more likable in person...

Post by **AntiM** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 5:27 am

If you want to have a project in the city (camp area), there are a couple ways to do this. One is to request to be a theme camp, and be placed. Yes, you could be a one man theme camp, or you could recruit a few other members. There is a high expectation of interactivity for placed camps. Your idea qualifies. I don't know how art funding and theme camps work together, as they tend to be two separate things. You will have to ask the appropriate BMROG folks how that works.

Or, you could be an unplaced camp, set up your project and just run it when you want. Again, funding might be out of pocket on this part. You show up, find an open spot and use as much space as you need. This might work in a village if you can find one which is agreeable to your idea. I'm in Hushville, which is ideal for my project; I have an address before I arrive on the playa and can put my project into the where what when guide. People can find me. Of course, the Home would suck in a high traffic area. I like being in the backwaters.

Actually, the advice to get the dust on your boots before designing a full scale project is not all bad. The playa presents unique challenges. I have no doubt you'll survive and thrive, but your art... I promise something will catch you totally off guard. Don't know what, but something will fuck one of your days. Happens to even the old hands.

It is still early days yet, although yes, that deadline is looming. I say go for it, have a good clean up plan, a plan B, a plan C, and enjoy the ride.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Thu Jan 20, 2011 9:17 am

Even if you do get funded, it's not likely to completely cover your costs. You probably want to look into other methods of cash raising. Last year Kickstarter seemed to be the most widely used, but there has been a variety over the years: parties, cafe press, and I know I"m missing others.