The Dome!- Completed Project
Well, its finally over. One of the most intense art weeks I have ever had in my entire life (although I feel like that every time...) I do think I bit off WAY more than I could chew, and although I felt the project to be very successful, I feel pretty burnt out right now and definitely need to take a couple days off.
The dome was installed this last week at Firefly Arts Collective in Bethel Vermont. And the installation was CRAZY. The festival takes place in a forest on a pretty intense hill. I had never been to the site before, but I was aware that everything needed to be hauled into the forest and set up. There are access roads, and the guys we shipped in with had rented a truck that we had assumed we would be able to haul my installation in with. Boy were we wrong.
It POURED the entire first day we were there, making the access road all but impassable except to a couple 4x4s. We were left having to haul almost the entire installation in by hand, up a muddy hill about half a mile each way. 2x4s, framing, camping gear, sound system, full kitchen, camp infrastructure, deco gear, trip after trip, all carried through mud and in the rain.
The site we were slotted for was pretty much a swamp. Just to be able to begin building the whole area had to be trenched out and drained.
This whole process of getting our gear in and making the camp useable took us the better part of a day and a half. That was before we could even begin building on the site. So many thanks to the three people who helped make this site useable- Max, Tony and Robyn, the troopers who carried all that sh*t up that hill.
All the centre panels are performance images of myself merging with animal parts, imagery from my art practice.
Plastic gets adhered to the dome to waterproof it.
The panels then get screwed into the dome top.
Finally, late that night with the help of some WONDERFUL wrangled volunteers, we get the dome top onto its base for the first time and test its initial lighting.
The next morning the process continues as I add string (which in theory was supposed to be black light reactive, although it wasn't. Note to self- check first next time.)
And finally the dome is done and ready for the festival!
And as far as haul out goes, was it easier than set up? Well, no. This is the funny little thing one of the guys on the clean up crew posted the day after-
Photo by Andrew Kaufman
As for us, our van got stuck for about 4 hours trying to get it out of the lot. We got two tow trucks stuck trying to rescue us, and finally were able to get out with the help of three polaris's hauling at the same time...
Photos by Gearhead Liz
Was the event worth it? I'm sure it was. But I'll let you know in about three more days once I'm finally finished sleeping...
Thank you so much to all the people who made this project possible! Jody McIntyre for convincing us all to come down and for the use of his tools, van and self over the last few months. Deglazer Laser for your amazing lighting job of the site, Tony Wilson for your hardcore labor and anyone who ever helped haul in, lift or remove any of this project. So many thanks. <3
Want to see and fund more awesome art that went to the event? Check out a couple friends-
Or these guys, although they just rocked getting the funding they needed-
And, if you want to hear more from one of our awesome camp members DJ forage who rocked it at Diode and Toten Kitten a few times throughout the week-