E M P T Y | V E S S E L | P R O J E C T | N E W S | 8 . 23 . 05
You are receiving this newsletter because you are involved in the Empty
Vessel Project, or have at least feigned interest. To be removed from this
list, contact
as@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org. Please forward to anyone we may
have missed.
EV is a World War II Navy Rescue boat. We saved her from demolition in the
Bronx and brought her to Brooklyn's Gowanus Canal. By next year, she will
become an Art and Design Center fostering projects focused on Sustainable
Living in Post-Industrial Urban Landscapes. EV, herself, will be the first
such project. We will begin by hosting work parties, movie nights,
seminars, concerts, dinners, and workshops.
You are welcome to participate, suggest your own events, stop by and chat
or offer insight. This missive is designed to serve as a guide for your
participation. It will come out at the beginning of each week. If you have
any suggestions for how this newsletter can be improved, contact
as@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org.
This is issue number five.
U P C O M I N G | C A L E N D A R
THURSDAY, AUGUST 25
Movie Night
Jaws
Steven Spielberg’s 1975 classic.
In celebration of biodiversity in the Gowanus Canal.
8 p.m.
$5 suggested donation, except for people who’ve helped out with the boat.
***at the boat
SUNDAY, AUGUST 28
Work Day
We especially need a welder, and plenty of carpenters and boatbuilders
(hello boatbuilders) as we hope to install the gate, replace more
window-frames, do some consolidating and filling of rotten sections (with
the famous West system), and painting/fibreglassing of dilapidated
sections of the superstructure. Or you can come by to shoot the breeze,
lie in the hammock, or kayak.
2-8 p.m.
***at the boat
The open meeting has been postponed. It will take place before the party
we are planning for Labor Day weekend. If you want to share any ideas or
inspiration in the meantime, please email us or drop by the boat on
Sunday.
W H E R E I S T H E B O A T ?
If you are interested in checking out the vessel and/or trying out the
hammock, just come down to the Carroll Street bridge over the canal during
a Work Day and yell. It's just 4 blocks from the Carroll stop on the F
train. For directions by train: www.hopstop.com. The bridge is at the
intersection of Bond and Carroll.
To take a look at a bird’s eye view of the boat’s location, check out the
maps.google.com satellite image at
http://tinyurl.com/7eu5q.
Once again, this time for real: We will be installing our own entrance
from Carroll Street this weekend. Our new address will be 401 Carroll
Street.
S H I P ' S L O G
This section will contain updates on recent projects and status reports of
on-going missions and explorations. Check here to find out the status of
the webpage and what kind of heater we will ultimately install.
WORK DAYS
We replaced the rotten plywood around one of the windows. We welded the
frame onto the gate. We fixed one of the sliding doors. We looked for the
leak. We discovered some archaeological artefacts submerged in the
bilge-water: a 1970s stiletto, a saucer and a pretty vase, and a small
plastic swan with a golden crown.
A partial list from our guest book:
Leo Raphaely, GDM, Mike Topper, Cindy Vanden Bosch, Sam Stark, Brian
Spinks, Gandy, Jesse Green, Tianna Kennedy, Michael
McCanne?, Alex
Scrimgeour
IMMINENT, PENDING, AND CONTINUING PROJECTS:
?? - means we could use a volunteer/some help — please get in touch!
Access:
installing our gate @ carol street bridge - ?? welding help
ramp/dock from new entrance to boat - ?? who'd like to help build this?
mural by swoon
Bilge:
installing 12V automatic bilge pump
finding and fixing small leak
Winterizing:
replacing rot/windows??
laying/enclosing insulation/working on walls
bio-diesel furnace
Greening:
green waste management system??
solar power
bicycle/tidal power experimentation??
Beautification/aesthetics and readying the boat for public use:
chopping and installing stairs - ?? welding
fixing doors - ??
strip and repaint interior and exterior - ??
fixing remaining windows - ??
sanding/refinishing floor - ??
repair of railing on roof
Tech:
web design for www.emptyvesselproject.org
wiki: log.emptyvesselproject.org
archiving
For the spring:
begin designing roof deck
Fundraising:
design T-shirts (see below)??
help plan/run/host an event - ??
have any rich uncles???
W I S H L I S T
We are creating a practice of re-use and salvage. We would like to give
your old materials new life. Specifically, we are looking for:
**marine paint
**other paint
**plywood
**furnace (from the street? call us if you see one)
**water tanks
**mismatched windows (preferably double paned)
**tools
**boat repair supplies (fiberglass, bilge cleaner, West system epoxy
resin, etc.)
**boat accessories (tie lines, cleats, automatic bilge or sump pumps,
marine electric lines)
**a lead on used french fry oil
**a sound system (PA and speakers or just your old stereo)
**solar panels
**12V batteries
**a transformer 120V to 12/24V
**plumbing supplies
**a small motor boat
**a dock or dock building materials (50 gallon drums, we got the planks)
**fans
**lights
We will haul away any material contributions. Please forward widely.
Contact
tk@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org to donate.
F U N D R A I S I N G
We are going to have a big fundraising party Labor Day Weekend. Details
will follow next week.
Do you want to design a T-shirt for E.V? Have T-shirts you can donate? We
are going to start selling a series of T-shirts to raise money. Email, or
come down on Sunday.
We’ve got a few more weeks to come up with ideas for the Brooklyn Arts
Council grant. The BAC won’t fund the repair of our boat, but likes art
projects. The categories in which awards are made are: visual arts,
film/video, media, photography, crafts, folk arts, multi-disciplinary,
lit/writing, dance, music, opera, theatre, drama. We’re open to all kinds
of suggestions.
We have started a $10,000 fundraising campaign to get the EVP through the
winter. We have applied for a community grant from Lowe's. We are seeking
other sources of official funding as well.
In addition, we are looking for individual donors to keep this project
afloat. If you have any suggestions, or are interested in contributing,
please contact
tk@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org.
HISTORY
History proper is still taking a break, so this week we draw your
attention to the entry for “bilge-water” in the Oxford English Dictionary.
a. The water that collects in the bilge of a ship through leakage or
otherwise, and becomes disgustingly foul and noxious.
1706 PHILLIPS, Bildge-Water, that water which...cannot come to the Well in
the Ship's Hold. 1751 SMOLLETT Per. Pic. lx, May I be bound to eat oakum
and drink bilge-water for life. 1840 R. DANA Bef. Mast ii. 3 That
inexpressibly sickening smell, caused by the shaking up of the bilge-water
in the hold.
b. = BILGE n. 1c. [cross-reference to “Nonsense, ‘rubbish’, ‘rot’”] Slang.
1878 G. M. HOPKINS Let. 13 May (1935) 50 Write no bilgewater about it.
H E R O E S
This week's heroes:
** Jesse Green is a superhero. Last week, he donated tools, and this week,
he welded the angle-irons to the gate, which is now ready for
installation.
**Peter Field for replacing the plywood around the most rotten window-frame.
**Leo Raphaely for the projector and screen for the movie.
A history of heroes:
Danny, GDM, Captain Jim, Fictional Company, Ed, Michael, Madagascar
Institute, Cindy Vanden Bosch, Dirty Fingers, Porkchop, northguineahills,
Front Room Gallery, DJ Olive, Steven, Ed and Brooke, Paris 1968, Corey and
the Free Store, Christian, Mike Topper, Alisa Blanter, Jesse Green
--
PaulaZ - 21 Nov 2005
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