WHO WE ARE
Can Can Wonderland founders are Christi Atkinson, Rob
Clapp, Chris Pennington, and Jennifer Pennington. We are the people behind such seminal Twin
Cities art projects as Walker Artist Designed Mini golf, the Ten Second Film Festival and Soap Factory’s Haunted Basement.
But we would not be Can Can Wonderland without the artists, fabricators
and professionals that are joining together to create this unique arts destination.
To-date, Can Can Wonderland has a population of 71 collaborators, and we are
growing every day.
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(our rockstar founders pictured above; below is a gathering of some of our artist collaborators presenting their mini golf holes!)
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WHAT IS CAN CAN WONDERLAND?
Can Can Wonderland is a mini golf course. We didn’t design it though. We asked the mini golf enthusiasts of the
world to do that. We sent out a call for
artists asking “What is the mini golf hole you have always wanted to play?” We
received over 200 proposals from all over the country and as far away as
Australia. A jury of talented architects, visual artists, fabricators, and electrical engineers helped us select the 18 mini golf holes to be built for our course, and we
believe they are spectacular!
But Can Can Wonderland isn’t just mini golf; it’s a wonderland full of
arts-based fauna and flora for you to explore and delight in! Our boardwalk is
full of attractions and amusements (created by/with artists). Our two stages offer a wide array of local
and regional talents. We have beer. We
have noshes! We even have a few unicorns.
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BUILDING A NATIONAL TREASURE AIN'T CHEAP!
“I’m sick of following my dreams. I’m just going to ask them where they’re going and hook up with them later. “ - Mitch HedbergWHAT WE NEED
We have been dreaming about mini golf for ages, and
we have a big vision for this project. We are creating an arts-immersive environment that includes mini golf, a boardwalk of amusements, two stages, a restaurant, bar, and a cafe and old fashioned soda fountain.
Of course, this project needs money to get off the ground, and
crowdfunding is a nice way to help do that, but to us, the most important part of
crowdfunding is the crowd part. What’s worth more than money? Energy!
People believing in the project.
People wanting to help see it through.
Can Can Wonderland needs the love and support of the community to make
the engine turn over. A contribution in ANY
amount is the vote of confidence that we need.
The dollars are gas in the tank.
Our goal for this campaign is to raise $40,000 from
the community. The monies raised here are ear marked for two purposes: to
complete the mini golf course and build the boardwalk of amusements. Stay tuned and we will be releasing a new video in the coming weeks so you can get to know our artists!
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THE IMPACT
The Twin Cities is a diverse region, yet most places are
mono-culture. Studies show that diverse audiences come together for fun,
recreational activities, for unique experiences. We aim to create an
arts-immersive place that has something for everyone.
We are using a new business
model. Because we are for profit we will be consumer-driven to survive. What
attracts people? Fun! But we don't want this to be cookie-cutter. We want the
scrappiness, edginess, whimsy, joy, imagination, vision to create something
that would be difficult to replicate, that is uniquely an arts place in St.
Paul, that will become a national treasure.
We became one of the first public benefit corporations in Minnesota because we have specific values that we want to support. To be an
economic engine for the arts means that we will build new audiences for the
arts and provide ongoing paid opportunities for artists. We are also exploring ways
to expand those paid opportunities through profit sharing. Treating artists
well also translates to treating our employees well - not every employee will
start out at a living wage initially, but they will all start out above minimum
wage, and it is our goal to move all employees into a living wage.
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WHAT YOU GET (i.e. PERKS!)
Beside that epic feeling of helping something you believe in grow we
wanted to come up with some #cancantastic perks that you will be proud
to rep. As we noodled on this piece of the puzzle we reached out to our
community and man is it good to have old friends who will help you in
your hour of need. Especially when they
are kick ass artists! Check out the column to the right to see all the
treasures that are available. As a little extra incentive we are making
some rad Can Can Wonderland buttons that are free for the first 100
contributors!
Here is a sampling of the goodies coming at you:
Renowned jewelry designer (Super) Karin Jacobson has
created a mini golf inspired, visually edible set of rings exclusively for Can
Can Wonderland crowdfunding efforts! We
only wish we had more fingers.
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Put A Ring On It
- $25 perk, Minneapolis treasure maker,
Karin Jacobson, designed this exclusive set of three rings
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#CANCANTASTIC- $40, Add some bling to those tweeting fingers!
Karin's back with this exclusive set of 5 whimsical rings -diamond,
flying saucer, heart, star, and #CANCANTASTIC!
DIY design magnates Aesthetic Apparatus crafted our stellar logo/brand and have created
a limited edition art print that you can wear right out the front door! (Strut Your Can Can - $30, a small batch run of AA designed t-shirts, made just for our Indiegogo crew!
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Prepare for your garage to start turning heads
when internationally known muralist John Grider of Broken Crow makes a
house
call you won’t soon forget.
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Garage D'Or
- $850 A rare and wonderful opportunity for you to bling out that garage of yours with original art by John Grider of
Broken Crow.
We have lots of other perks design to help you and crew get first dibs on taking over our space, from mini golf passes you can use any day we are open (
May The Fore Be With You
-$50, for 4 folks to play) to a family membership that lets you swing your clubs any time you like for an entire year!! (
No More Chuck E. Cheese!
- $250, Unlimited mini golf for a year for 2 adults & 2 kids)
If you like to PARTY you can join us at our opening event (
Wonder Party Golden Ticket
- $100, come celebrate our opening with one ticket that covers food, drinks, mini golf, and artist entertainment- whoop whoop!) OR BOOK YOUR OWN barn raiser; Birthday boys and girls: Be early birds, save the
date, get a discounted rate! (
They Say It's Your Birthday
- $300, Two hour private room rental with pizza, drinks, and mini golf passes for 12 people) Brides and Grooms: Golly gee do we have a room for you! Book it
before anyone knows it exists! Or throw a twist in the boring annual office party!
RISKS & CHALLENGES
We’re not going to lie; this project is big, but doable! It’s true - much of what we are trying has never been
done before and that is what makes it so exciting. For instance, we are the
first Public Benefit Corporation in the state of Minnesota and the only one (to
date) with an arts focus. We think large, but we work hard to innovate and make our ideas come to life.
We are creating a new platform for
artists to work and earn a living. We
are taking the corporate model and imbuing it with the soul of a non-profit. (Imagine
if that idea takes off)? Because we are on the front edge, our business model is very new. We have built an incredible team of talented people, and have secured the support of many established organizations including Creative Enterprise Zone, Hamline Midway Coalition, Midway Chamber of Commerce, Hamline University, Visit Saint Paul, Forecast Public Art, and the Soap Factory among others.
Our first investment came in the form of a competitive grant in the amount of $350,000 from ArtPlace America. Their investment in us was a tremendous vote of confidence and seed money to develop and execute our ambitious project.
We were also fortunate to be selected to be part of Fredrikson & Byron's Public Benefit Cultivator program which includes consulting services from The Improve Group.
Our past projects speak to our ability to realize a dream for the greater good! We believe in us and invite you to too!
You don’t need $$$ to help the cause. Sending an email to a friend who might
connect with our project is more than enough. You never know!
Beyond contributing, consider signing up to volunteer
at Can Can Wonderland! This summer will
be a hive of activity. Work side my side with amazing artists and
fabricators. There are a million skilled
and unskilled jobs that need to be done, and we could use your elbow grease.
Volunteering also has its perks! Visit us on Facebook for more information. #yeswecancan
