Hello and welcome!
My name is Paige Tashner. I'm an artist and cat lover in Point
Richmond, CA.
I'm so excited to share that
Trust, my third large-scale art
installation, is heading to Burning Man this summer. Woo hoo! AND this
project received a Black Rock City Honoraria Grant. OH MEOW GODDESS!
Illustration by Molly Gregory
Description
Trust is a circle of 5 large, metal, cat sculptures with their butts and tails in the air, buttholes facing inward. Each butthole will be decorated differently - disco, infinity mirror, fabric, textured, uv-reactive, etc. Each cat will have a color theme with matching collar: Purple, Turquoise, Chartreuse, Hot Pink, and International Orange. The cats’ eyes light up and each sculpture will cast a colorful glow onto the playa in its theme color.
Within the circle of cats, participants will find a cat scratcher post themed podium with a binder of laminated pages of trust exercises. People can explore and interact with each other inside the "ring of trust."
A nearby cat condo inspired bench houses the solar panels and batteries. It provides shade by day and a great viewpoint to gaze at the glowing kitties by night.
Rainbow of CAD Cats on a Flatbed Trailer
Philosophy Behind Trust
When a cat shows you her butt, she absolutely trusts you. She's like, "Here! You're my human and I feel good about it." And it’s funny!
Meeting new people, experiencing new things - and going to Burning Man! - can be intimidating and overwhelming.
Trust provides comic relief to help people let down their guard and, hopefully, feel safe to trust themselves and other people they encounter within the ring.
The trust exercises provided to visitors inside the circle of cats
can offer them fun ways to connect with strangers and possibly build
new - or strengthen existing! - relationships.
CAD Cat Model Slices for CNC
Inspiration and Dedication
I'm making art about what and who I love.
I love cats! I have 8
cats - all rescues. I even created another cat-inspired installation,
the Purr Pods, in 2019. And each cat sculpture in Trust will be
dedicated to someone I lost this past year.
Me and Boo
Boo and KittenKat Inspect the 1/3 Scale Model
One of the cat sculptures will be purple (lighting, collar,
etc.) and I am dedicating it specifically to my beloved friend,
Heather Winfrey. She loved purple, had purple hair, personally rescued
hundreds of cats, and loved her friends, family and husband with all
her heart. I miss her so much.
Where Do the Contributions Go?
Glad you asked!
This fundraising campaign will help fill the
gaps in the budget.
What does that mean?
It means I'll be able to purchase all the
lights to make the cats radically glow on (and off!) the playa; higher
wattage solar panels, LiFePO4 batteries, and a higher amperage charge
controller for an efficient alternative energy system; get the lumber
and hardware needed to build the cat scratcher podium and solar panel
bench that will shade visitors and house the batteries and charge
controller; ensure that I'll have the flatbed trailer to haul the
installation to and from Burning Man; clean and powder coat the cat
sculptures when they return from Burning Man and be shared with the
public; and, most importantly, you’re supporting my volunteers with
the tools, equipment, safety gear and food to make this installation a reality!
Fiscally Sponsored / Tax Deductions
I've partnered with ArtPush as my fiscal sponsor for this campaign! ArtPush is a wonderful arts non-profit out of Alameda, CA that supports artists and art projects in the East Bay. That means your contributions are TAX DEDUCTIBLE!
Your Help
I'm incredibly grateful to Burning Man for the grant. It makes a big dent in the overall costs of the project, covering 60% of the total budget! But materials, build/shop space rent in the Bay Area and transportation to/from Burning Man have gone way up in the last couple of years…and I’m going 100% solar!
In addition, a percentage of the grant is held for deposit for potential services needed at Burning Man and to incentivize a pristine installation site post-event. That reduces the amount of immediate funding for the build.
So, I'm asking my Burning Man and cat (and cat art) loving
communities to help me raise the remaining 40% needed to
complete and get Trust to the playa.
Your support is appreciated in any form whether it's by a
monetary gift, employer matching funds or telling people about the
project. Please share this campaign with your friends, family and
art (and cat!) lovers everywhere.
Thank You
Your wonderful contributions will help cover the costs of the lighting, solar power, construction supplies and services, transportation and feeding my volunteers.
Follow Trust
Website
Facebook
Instagram
Flickr
Perks
A beautiful solid brass, double-sided, ready-to-wear Trust medallion, two 3" Trust stickers (one of each color), one glow-in-the-dark 3” vinyl sticker, and two embroidered patches (one of each color). AND a paw tip to you on our “Catributors” thank you list.
1 medallion, 3 stickers & 2 patches
Get lucky with this very special, solid brass, double-sided,
ready-to-wear Trust medallion.
In addition, you get two embroidered patches (one of
each color), two Trust stickers (one of each color), one
glow-in-the-dark 3” vinyl sticker, two glow-in-the-dark buttons, one
magnet and your name on our “Catributors” page!
1 medallion, 2 patches, 3 stickers, 2 buttons & 1 magnet
Meow!
Two Trust medallions, four embroidered patches (two of each color), four 3” vinyl stickers (two of each color), two 3” glow-in-the-dark vinyl stickers, four glow-in-the-dark buttons, one magnet and some serious “Catributor” acknowledgement added to the mix.
2 medallions, 4 patches, 6 stickers, 4 buttons & 1 magnet
Thank you for supporting our dreams of creating this art installation
to share on the playa. In addition to the Claws for
Celebration above,you’ll receive a purrsonalized thank you
video jettisoned like a fur ball straight to your computer.
2 medallions, 4 patches, 6 stickers, 4 buttons, 1 magnet & 1 video
Highlights
See all activity140
A beautiful solid brass, double-sided, ready-to-wear Trust medallion, two 3" Trust stickers (one of each color), one glow-in-the-dark 3” vinyl sticker, and two embroidered patches (one of each color). AND a paw tip to you on our “Catributors” thank you list.
1 medallion, 3 stickers & 2 patches
Get lucky with this very special, solid brass, double-sided,
ready-to-wear Trust medallion.
In addition, you get two embroidered patches (one of
each color), two Trust stickers (one of each color), one
glow-in-the-dark 3” vinyl sticker, two glow-in-the-dark buttons, one
magnet and your name on our “Catributors” page!
1 medallion, 2 patches, 3 stickers, 2 buttons & 1 magnet
Meow!
Two Trust medallions, four embroidered patches (two of each color), four 3” vinyl stickers (two of each color), two 3” glow-in-the-dark vinyl stickers, four glow-in-the-dark buttons, one magnet and some serious “Catributor” acknowledgement added to the mix.
2 medallions, 4 patches, 6 stickers, 4 buttons & 1 magnet
Thank you for supporting our dreams of creating this art installation
to share on the playa. In addition to the Claws for
Celebration above,you’ll receive a purrsonalized thank you
video jettisoned like a fur ball straight to your computer.
2 medallions, 4 patches, 6 stickers, 4 buttons, 1 magnet & 1 video
