Caves are fascinating places, and I really wanted to make a dance in one.
My name is Jen Mesch. I'm a choreographer.
I am interested in remote places and geological formations. The time I've spent in caves inspired me to work on Cavern.
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jen mesch
My idea is to film dance in an actual wilderness cave, then design a large cave sculpture in which the video material will be viewed.
We've finished Phase I:
Filming dance in a cave and developing a series of short films that convey our cave allegory
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ainsley hillyard and kate stashko
We need help for Phase II:
Building the abstract cave sculpture, and installing the sound and video.
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We are applying for additional grants.
But that won't cover our whole budget
Your support will go directly toward building the cave.
Specifically:
1. Building materials
2. Hardware
3. Tool rental
4. Projectors and speakers
5. Cables, power cords
In addition to the great feeling you'll get for being an important part of breathing life into our project, we have some great gifts for you to show our gratitude.
Depending on how much you can give, we're offering everything from original music from the project, a short video version of the project, a copy of the Jen Mesch Dance Conspiracy Cookbook with recipes from past collaborators, a live dance performance in your driveway, or even your own adventure in the same cave in which we filmed the dance scenes of Cavern!
In the event that we do not reach our financial goal, Cavern will be shown in galleries as a series of dance videos. Depending on funds, we may create a less elaborate cave environment. We want to be able to realize our vision, but we will do the best we can with whatever funds we can raise.
The Impact
Cavern is a truly unique collaboration of artists who also love caves. Cavern adds something very special to an existing body of art that references many aspects of caves and what we imagine about them. We hope other people will become intrigued by cave exploration, cave lore, and the unusual features unique to caves and karst topographies.
We plan to show Cavern throughout North America in gallery spaces, museums and independent spaces over the next two to three years. Because we are predominantly Edmonton artists and our first grant was from the Edmonton Arts Council, Cavern will debut in Edmonton.
Other Ways You Can Help
Even if you can't help us financially, we need other kinds of help, too.
1. Volunteer
We need occasional help with everything from help with build and/or the set up of the structure with the guidance of our technicians to helping with mailings. Any amount of time is appreciated!
2. Help bring Cavern to you
If you know of a place in your city that might like to host a 12' cube cave/dance/sound/video piece, let us know!
3. Spread the word about our campaign
Let people know about our unusual and exciting project and our fundraising campaign.
4. Visit a cave, and then tell us about it
Ok, this doesn't really help on a practical level to help us to fully realize our project. But from our own experiences, we know that spending time in a cave can be a real physical and psychological challenge. We'd love to hear about your cave experiences.
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Thank you so much for your support and we look forward to making Cavern happen.
Jen Mesch
