#awesomewithoutborders

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Grant 26: Twistedly Dandified

If you’ve never been Twistedly Dandified, then Bobby Zokaites invites you to climb into the wonder. 

An Arizona-based artist, his thematic investigation of adventure and childhood have led him to his upcoming work, inspired by an amalgam of subjects from automobiles to Robinson Crusoe.

Said Zokaites: I have been constantly reminded of a quote from Richard Dattner, who explored the playground as the connection point between humans; he states that playgrounds exist “Between the world of fantasy and the world of reality, between the world of intuition and the world of logical things, and between the world of solitary play and the world of social cooperation and mutual understanding.”

To imbibe this same spirit, Zokaites will ask participants to climb into their own playground: six small rooms he will craft by weaving seatbelt webbing around aluminum structures to form conical baskets large enough for adults to stand in.

“It’s a large, colorful-tactile installation,” Bobby says, “which will undoubtedly draw the attention of anyone who sees it; taking on the role of an architectural intervention, to conceptually connect ‘high art’, architecture, playgrounds and participatory installations.”

Feeling inspired by Zokaites' approach to awesome? Learn more about his previous work (below) via his website then apply for a grant of your own!

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Grant 23: Great Basin Permaculture

The permaculture movement is alive and well in Las Vegas thanks to a trio of cultivation enthusiasts. Great Basin Permaculture cofounders Tiffany Whisenant, Peter Frigeri, and Jessica Penrod (two horticulturists and one permaculturist, respectively) created the nonprofit in an effort to educate Nevadans about sustainable food production, water conservation, and energy.

The nonprofit's 5300 square foot permaculture learning garden is home to weekly workshops and walking tours which teach participants how the group uses: rainfall to form sunken growing beds and swales, organic matter and nitrogen-fixing plants to improve soil, chipped christmas trees to make mulch, and coffee grounds and food scraps to form compost. They also discuss how the plants selected for the garden are food producing and/or serve multiple purposes within the ecosystem, like mesquite trees which add nitrogen to the soil, provide dappled shade, and produce pods that can be ground into a protein-rich flour. This approach allows GBP to spend the majority of their time harvesting versus replanting annual seeds.

The group also hosts discussions with thoughtleaders like Brad Lancaster, (a rainwater harvesting and water management expert) and a pancake breakfast in October featuring the food harvested. To learn more about Great Basin Permaculture visit the website, follow them on Facebook or Twitter, and join their Meetup group to attend an event!

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Grant 21: Funding The Future of Endangered Lakota Youth

Billy Ray Blocker, Jr. is passionate about South Dakota’s Oglala Sioux Tribe.

A retired law enforcement officer, he was struck by the increasing number of school dropouts, gang memberships, alcohol and substance abuse cases, and teenage suicides – the latter being 150% higher than the national average – on the Pine Ridge Reservation. The ability for Lakota youth to find employment, start a business, or access the resources needed to pay for college are extremely limited.

Billy decided to change that. To support these young people and develop a sustainable economic infrastructure for employment and growth, Billy (in conjunction with fiscal sponsor ONE Spirit) is establishing a Native American credit union savings program for seven Oglala Sioux teens, 14-17 years old.

After completing financial training, each teen will receive six months of minimum deposits ($25 per month) into a Youth Individual Development Account (IDA) at Lakota Funds in Kyle, South Dakota. Lakota Funds will then match $3 for every $1 up to $2,160, to be used for asset-specific purchases like paying for college, starting a business, or buying a home.

Billy hopes that a successful implementation of this project will be the impetus for collaboration between individuals (separately or through crowdfunding), corporations, and/or foundations for additional teen sponsorships via Lakota Funds, as each dollar invested in the Pine Ridge Reservation community means $4 going out to individual Lakota teens with a message of hope and support!

To learn more about the Lakota Indians and ONE Spirit's Youth Programs, visit their website, Facebook and Twitter channels. Have an awesome idea of your own? We want to hear about it! Apply!

Photos courtesy of Jonathan Hamner and ONE Spirit

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Grant 20: Film On China's 'Copy Towns'

Who knew you could visit the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal and Christ the Redeemer just by going to China?

A recent phenomenon, called ‘copy towns,' in which western buildings and even entire towns are reconstructed for the high-end property market in China, is the subject of upcoming film and multi-media project ‘Hallstatt, China.' Thanks to artists Sebastian Acker and Phil Thompson, you will soon be able to see these sights for yourself. 

The film will feature footage from a number of locations, including Thames Town: a town with a number of replicated English buildings; the Dafen Oil Painting Village: where 80% of the worlds fake oil paintings are produced; two versions of the Eiffel Tower; and Hallstatt, China (a replica of the UNESCO-protected town Hallstatt, Austria). It will also include interviews with the marketing teams and residents of both the original and replicated towns, architect Ai Weiwei, and the mayor of Hallstatt, Austria, Alexander Scheutz.

To learn more about the film, check out the artists' Tumblr page and follow them on Twitter.

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Grant 19: 30 Days Of Opera

Month. Long. Opera. Extravaganza. AND IT’S FREE?!

Oh, yes. These were the magic words that landed Opera Memphis this week’s AWB grant. The only professional opera company in the Mid-South, Opera Memphis reaches over 23,000 young people a year through community engagement activities. This September, they have something even grander up their sleeve.

Enter 30 Days of Opera: a month-long program aimed at breaking down the perceived barriers that prevent many people from experiencing the power of opera.

Over the course of 30 consecutive days, Opera Memphis will offer 50+ free public performances at more than 40 different locations across the Memphis region. These events will introduce opera into the daily routines of local residents — at farmers markets, restaurants, schools —and even high-traffic street corners; each event a “breadcrumb” that will lead participants to the opera house.

Now in its second year, this grant will allow 30 Days to expand the roster of singers, significantly increasing the number of free performances they can deliver. Not in the Memphis area? No problem! Follow along through the Opera Memphis website and via the org's Facebook and Twitter channels.

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Grant 14: Gaia Milieu for "The Color Wheel" at HERE

For the NYC dweller daydreaming about communing with nature, Crystal Wagner's new installation, Gaia Milieu, may prove to be your lunch break sanctuary. Through a variety of printmaking processes and "modern world materials" like office supplies, neon straws and pipe cleaners, Crystal will explore the increasingly severe divide between human beings and their natural world.

Crystal is one of three artists featured in HERE Gallery's latest art exhibit, "The Color Wheel," which displays the rich variety of emotional responses intense color can evoke, from joy and excitement to intrigue and revulsion. An art exhibit that is dynamic, playful, powerful and pop-y, The Color Wheel aims to engage viewers in a sensual conversation.

Get a feel for Crystal's work in the time lapse video, above, on her website, and on Facebook, then stop by the Gallery and check out the show! (Did we mention it's FREE?!)

Have an awesome idea of your own? Apply here!