Check out the
fantastic proposals that were presented at Feast #14 on May 6, 2017!
The Bait/Switch
Project
“A city-wide experiment in casual art
making”
By: Lucy Valena
Description
Bait/Switch is a new project inspired by the art party game known variously as
‘Exquisite Corpse‘, ‘Fax Machine‘, or ‘Eat Poop, You Cat‘. The premise is
simple: a picture is drawn on one end of a piece of paper and passed to the
next player; that person writes a description of what they see in the picture
and then folds the paper over to obscure the first drawing. The next player
than makes a new drawing based on what the previous person wrote, and the cycle
continues, producing an unwieldy chain of (often silly) artistic expression.
Usually this game is played among friends, but what happens when it is deployed
throughout the Boston community and played among strangers? I propose to
construct and distribute a series of mechanisms (‘BaitBoxes’), which will
facilitate this activity. These wooden boxes will have a roll of paper inside,
and a hand crank on the outside will allow participants to advance the paper
like a typewriter ribbon. The boxes will be distributed to local businesses
around the city, and the drawings will be collected periodically. Excerpts from
the BaitBoxes will be featured in a small zine, which will be released
quarterly.
How will you use the grant to make your project happen?
The grant will be used to purchase materials, build the boxes, and to print the
zine, which will be distributed for free at participating locations.
Why and to whom is your project important or relevant?
In a time ruled by autopilot and carefully crafted status updates, The
Bait/Switch Project will provide a fun injection of spontaneous creative energy
to people throughout the community. Because it is so open ended, the boxes can
be placed in all sorts of different locations, such as bars, coffee shops, and
retail stores, and can be enjoyed by adults and children alike. Won’t it be
interesting to see how (or if!) content varies depending on where the boxes are
placed?
Somerville
Neighborways
“Improving children’s outdoor play opportunities by helping communities
transform residential streets into safe, inviting Neighborways.”
By: Erica Quigley, Sara Brunelle - Heyday Collaborative, Mark Chase -
Somerville Neighborways
Description
Although outdoor play is critically important to children’s development, kids
aren’t playing as much as they used to. A major reason is the speed and volume
of cars on residential streets. What if these streets, and the crossings
between them, became comfortable places to walk, bike, and play? Neighborways
are residential streets that are designed to give priority to people while
allowing slower-moving vehicles to pass through. Each Neighborway becomes an
inviting place to play; together, they form a network between homes, schools,
parks, and shops.
Mark Chase with Somerville Neighborways has worked with residents of several
Somerville streets to paint pavement murals and other visual cues. The
longer-term goal is to help community members make permanent improvements such
as curb “bump-outs” with benches, vegetation, and public art that cue vehicle
drivers to slow down.
Erica Quigley and Sara Brunelle from Heyday Collaborative are play space
designers helping residents think about next steps. For this project, we’ll
work with people on one street to improve play opportunities. We’ll ask people
to share play memories; many adults have forgotten how much fun they had on their
doorsteps with simple things like chalk, stones, leaves, and puddles. After
helping children and adults set goals for their street, we’ll facilitate
activities that further those goals, such as play events or design charrettes
for bump-outs. Finally, we’ll write a summary report to publicize successes.
How will you use the grant to make your project happen?
Pilot projects have built support for Neighborways among residents and city
agencies, who each contribute labor and funding. The City of Somerville is
investing $120,000 of State Complete Streets money, and five new Neighborways
will paint street murals in 2017. Feast funding will leverage this support by
taking one Neighborway to the next level as a prototype. Success on one street
will help stakeholders envision what is possible for other streets.
Our budget includes a stipend for Heyday Collaborative’s designers, who plan to
put in at least 60 hours of work. Funds will also be used for printing event
flyers and a final report summarizing outcomes. This project will take place in
summer of 2017.
Why and to whom is your project important or relevant?
Historically, urban children have been free to play in spaces and pathways near
home and school. Neighborways restore this freedom, making physical and psychological
space for play in everyday places. When children can move comfortably between
frequent destinations, it’s easier to meet up with friends and play along the
way.
A low-stress transportation network benefits residents of all ages by making it
easier to choose walking or biking for short trips. As more and more people use
Neighborways, a “safety in numbers” effect will reduce the likelihood of
crashes between vehicles and pedestrians. Neighborways provide street
environments that meet safety concerns, encouraging active transportation as
well as children’s play.
Neighborways combine design and community organizing to slow down traffic and
encourage walking, biking, and playing. A participatory approach empowers
communities to work together to make real change, right where they live.
TIT-tee’s
“A philanthropic social commentary piece on body standards.”
By: Anna Stabler
Description
TIT-tee’s is inspired by creative activism. As our country was electing a new
president, my community began to feel the negative effects of the new
administration pushing them into deeper states of stress and frustration. I
felt the need to find something to bring joy to my community through
representing issues underrepresented by the President and his cabinet.
Shortly after the inauguration, I found myself doodling at a
bar. Soon, my scallop-like boob doodle evolved into screen printed t-shirts and
custom fabric. I decided these shirts would be called TIT-tee’s. Without
excluding men, I made a textile of various sized penis’s in a medallion style
formation too for shorts called BALL-Bottoms.
Through these garments we are celebrating the creative
process, women and mens body images, and the power of creative activism. Fifty
percent of any sale of a TIT-tee or Ball-bottom will go directly to Planned
Parenthood or Testicular Cancer Research.
The TIT-tee’s launch party will be directed primarily at the
local art community to encourage the importance of creative activism. It will
be held at a local venue. There will be local snacks, sips, and products for
sale all around a mini fashion show of TIT-tee’s and Ball-Bottoms.
This project will be an ongoing online experience until all
products are sold. I chose to bring awareness to body standards, specifically
two of the most vulnerable body parts. My hope is that my process will inspire
others to think how they can use their creative super-powers to move their
community and stand up for others fighting the good fight.
How will you use the grant to make your project happen?
The grant will allow me to purchase the remaining materials to produce the
products and cover part of the cost of the launch party. Without the grant the
price of the products will be higher and less accessible to those who would
like to purchase a product to support the causes and represent the project. I
have already purchased the TIT-tee’s silkscreen and the fabric for both
textiles.
Rough Timeline:
APRIL
Test pattern for tee’s.
Finalize pattern for tee’s and fabricating first prototype.
Test pattern for shorts.
Draft brand and packaging.
MAY
Finalize pattern for shorts and fabricating first prototype.
Produce replica’s of both shirt and shorts.
Finalize brand and packaging.
Order bulk products.
Print bulk products.
JUNE
Secure a venue and menu for launch party.
Map out timeline and team for launch.
Finalize online store.
Launch Party!
Why and to whom is your project important or relevant?
With the current events needing our attention in every direction it becomes
easy to forget about fun. Without trying to tackle every issue all at once the
TIT-tee’s project offers an opportunity to expand the community I know even
further to get others involved in making a difference not just through
philanthropy but through visual communication. The TIT-tee’s project is
provocative, light hearted, and meaningful. Supporters of TIT-tee’s and
Ball-bottom’s are individuals that believe in outside-of-the-box thinking,
community builders, change-makers and genuinely kind humans.
The TIT-tee’s project is intended to encourage pro-active
use of creative skills and is specially inspired by these frustrating political
times where creativity is needed to illustrate injustice. The project is also
important to women and men who want to break down body-image standards, what
the media projects as ‘perfect’.
Doula Training:
Empowering Women in the Immigrant Community
“Doulas change the world one birth at a time - sponsoring women from the recent
immigrant community to become Doulas will in turn support recent immigrant
women giving birth and empower the community!”
By: Julia Dickinson
Description
DONA (Doulas of North America) describe doulas as “a trained professional who
provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to a mother
before, during and shortly after childbirth to help her achieve the healthiest,
most satisfying experience possible.”
Doulas are labor coaches who bring a strong understanding of
the community and the culture of the women they serve, and fulfill an important
function for their community as mentor and healthcare system intermediary.
For recent immigrants with limited supports, Doulas are cultural
brokers-helping the laboring woman understand the medical culture and helping
the medical team understand the women’s cultural beliefs.
The direct benefit of doulas are two fold – first to help provide an optimal
labor experience for a recent immigrant and second to increase the capacity of
the hospital staff to provide culturally competent care.
Additionally supporting a Doula training program opens the
door to a new health care career path for immigrant women, including women who
may have been midwives or nurses in their country of origin.
How will you use the grant to make your project happen?
This funding would allow the Midwives at Mount Auburn to sponsor 3 doulas for
training through Birth Arts International at $300 a person, $900 total. Birth
Arts provides their students with culturally sensitive doula training as well
as marketing skills. For those women who we have sponsored to go through the
doula program, the midwives would also support them in attending the five births
that they need to become certified. In the process of gaining the
experience they need to become certified, the doulas would serve our vulnerable
families at no cost to the patient. The average cost of a birth doula in MA is
$1000, which is cost prohibitive for many low income women and families. This
training will provide a valuable professional opportunity for recent immigrant
women in our community and we hope that they will continue to provide volunteer
services to our low-income patients in the future. At a minimum, 15 patients
from the recent immigrant community will receive free doula services.
Why and to whom is your project important or relevant?
This project is in conjunction with the Midwives at Mount Auburn Hospital and
Charles River Community Health Service (CRHC). Mount Auburn Hospital
provides onsite midwifery services at CRCHC where we serve a large number of
vulnerable community members: 78% identify as Hispanic, 58% require interpreter
services, 84% are under 200% of the Federal Poverty Level and 42% are
uninsured. Most importantly, 60% of the CRCHC women who delivered last
year at Mount Auburn Hospital immigrated during their pregnancy. A Doula
is critical for these women who have only been in the US for weeks or months.
The goal will be to match patients with doulas who share
their cultural and linguistic background. We will recruit our doulas from
students enrolled in local English Speakers of Other Language programs and
other immigrant serving organizations.
Prison Gardens in Bloom!
“We will be using this grant to buy bulbs for a fundraiser, in which supporters
will buy bulbs and our students will plant them in their prison gardens.”
By: Sarah Cadorette, Erika Rumbley, and Renée Portanova of The New Garden
Society
Description
This fundraiser will allow ephemerals to simultaneously bloom in our prison
gardens and in our supporters' backyards. This is how it works: a supporter will
purchase bulbs from us, and the money will fund the bulbs that we will use to
introduce a new variety of plants to our students, and that they will then
plant in the gardens in their prison yards.
How will you use the grant to make your project happen?
This grant will allow us to purchase 3,000 bulbs to make this fundraiser a
reality.
Why and to whom is your project important or relevant?
This project would not only allow our students to have a more vibrant garden
and learning experience, it would also give our supporters a tangible
connection to the work we do inside of prisons, which is by its nature
invisible.
