E M P T Y | V E S S E L | P R O J E C T | N E W S # 21 | JAN . 11 . 06
Happy New Year! The Empty Vessel crew is back from the holidays, refreshed and breathing the clean cool air of our new surroundings. You can still find us during work days from the Carroll Street Bridge. There are twigs here and samplings and the Gowanus Canal has never looked so glorious by afternoon light. The boat is afloat, electricity works and we have a temporary, diesel-powered heater. Many schemes are in the works for 2006. Please join us.
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Be it Known:::A small band of revelers of dubious background, known associates of gypsies, wildmen and bootleggers, have set about to throw a huge party to raise rent and insurance money for the Empty Vessel Project in February.
Reality Check:::That's you, me and all our friends
We have a gorgeous renovated silo on the Gowanus waterfront, full of nooks and crannies and moonlight. We need your decoration, music creation, hair cut administration, idea generation, publication and dream realization prowess. We need your energy and your sleepless nights.
But firstly, we need you to join us for a drink and brainstorm.
Sunday, January 15
7pm
Canal Bar
270 3rd Avenue (between President and Union)
Brooklyn
See you there, you swarthy dog! And spread the word...
U P C O M I N G
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15
Work Day
12-6pm
**at the boat
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15
Fundraiser Drinkstorm
7pm
**Canal Bar, 270 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn
MONDAY, JANUARY 16
Work Day
12-6pm
**at the boat
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4
Empty Vessel Project fills up Proteus Gowanus Gallery
An evening tunes and 'tails, with fabulous musical guests and complimentary wine. Details soon.
8pm, $10.
**Proteus Gowanus Interdisciplinary Reading Room, Nevins & Union, Brooklyn
APRIL 2006
GRAND OPENING
Empty Vessel Launch Festival!!
We are accepting proposals for events and collaborations. Email
as@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org to discuss your wintery watery scheme.
W H E R E I S T H E B O A T N O W ?
We are just south of the Carroll Street Bridge over the Gowanus Canal. During work days, find us by coming to the bridge, looking south and yodeling. Event access to the boat is at 1st Street on the west side of the Canal.
To take a look at a bird’s eye view of the boat’s location, check out the
http://maps.google.com satellite image at
http://tinyurl.com/7eu5q.
For directions by train:
http://www.hopstop.com. We are 2 1/2 blocks
from the Carroll Street Stop on the F and G trains.
H I S T O R Y
(We returned from the holidays with stories of man and beast. We got stung by jellyfish and fought with wild dogs. We carry scars and poison in our blood. We imagined Brooklyn as a respite. Here a story of a Brooklyn beast. It's a story the size of a dust bunny, so small it could easily be swept aside in the larger history of the Empty Vessel Project. Part of the purpose of history is to tell you who we are.)
We are in a sun-dappled kitchen looking out onto two hundred year old grain silos, meeting with the man who trades cash money for our security in knowing that when we leave our boat tied to rusty nails and unused poles at the water edge of his property, he won't cut it loose.
This man gives me a cigarette. I am petting his skinny grey cat. It's purring, rubbing its head against my hand, its shoulders against my thighs. It looks up at me with yellow eyes way too big for its streamlined alley cat body. So streamlined, in fact, that it is actually making due with three legs where most spoiled felines insist on four. This three-legged scraggly beast has chosen me as this morning's companion in his battle against the world. He curls completely between my legs, immobilizing me. I take a drag of a cigarette, ash, and try to scoot over to make room on the bench. The man with the rusty nails and unused poles says something. 'Fiesty'? 'Finicky'? 'Fidgety'? And the cat looks straight into my eyes, opens its jaw in a long leisurely yawn, and sinks his teeth into the meaty rosy part of my cheek. Twelve hours later, there was still a perfect square of incisor marks to the right of my nose.
The next time we run into the man, he is escorting his four-year-old son home from the playground on a tiny mountain bike with training wheels. His son wears flashing red lights above his forehead and the base of his skull. He refuses to speak and simply stares are us, big blue eyes a cross between savagery and tears. He refuses both handshake and high-five. "I think we should leave him alone. A little girl at the playground just rubbed sand into his eyes," says the father with the rusty nails, the unused posts and the vicious three-legged cat. I listen.
S H I P ’ S L O G
Insulation works. The next step will be skinning the walls with "pre-regulation" wood ripped from a condemned Brownstone. It's so old it has square nails in it. Come down for some creative carpentry!
Watch for changes at emptyvesselproject.org. Our website re-launch is imminent.
For updates on ongoing projects, check out our TWiki at
http://log.emptyvesselproject.org. Advice is always appreciated. Don’t be shy.
Please post.
F U N D R A I S I N G
Be it Known:::A small band of revelers of dubious background, known associates of gypsies, wildmen and bootleggers, have set about to throw a huge party to raise rent and insurance money for the Empty Vessel Project in February.
Reality Check:::That's you, me and all our friends
We have a gorgeous renovated silo on the Gowanus waterfront, full of nooks and crannies and moonlight. We need your decoration, music creation, hair cut administration, idea generation, publication and dream realization prowess. We need your energy and your sleepless nights.
But firstly, we need you to join us for a drink and brainstorm.
Sunday, January 15
7pm
Canal Bar
270 3rd Avenue (between President and Union)
Brooklyn
See you there, you swarthy dog! And spread the word...
Dinner and a movie was a beautiful evening and a fundraising success. Through the generosity of friends and strangers, we raised $600. in one night and were able to pay for 1/4 of our annual liability insurance policy. Three more dinners would cover the rest. We are looking for unique locations and inspired chefs. Some potential dates: Sunday, January 29 or Sunday, February 12. Contact
pz@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org if you want to help.
We are $370. towards making warm water run through our lovely heating loop and radiate warm air through the vessel. We have bought a temporary diesel heater with $200. of that money so that work can continue on the boat through the cold and dreary. Thank you!!!
You can make a financial contribution to the EVP on our website at
http://log.emptyvesselproject.org or by clicking here:
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_xclick&business=info%40emptyvesselproject%2eorg&item_name=Empty%20Vessel%20Project&no_shipping=0&no_note=1&tax=0¤cy_code=USD&bn=PP%2dDonationsBF&charset=UTF%2d8
Thanks to the Madagascar Institute, we have a 501c(3) Non-Profit number we can provide you for your contribution.
Give to the Empty Vessel Project = save on
your taxes.
We are also looking for sources of official money that will fund the Empty
Vessel Project in the longer term as either (a) an arts project (b) an
environmental project or (c) a social experiment and decentralized environment
for skill shares. We need money for both infrastructure and specific projects.
Are you a grant writer? In development? Know someone that is? We need to raise $10-20,000 to get through the winter. Contact
pz@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org.
W I S H L I S T
MATERIALS: 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:
**fire extinguishers
**10 gallon plastic buckets with lids
**toaster oven
**vegetable steamer
**wet/dry vac
**50,000 –100,000 BTU oil or gas burning
boiler OR a diesel stove!!!
**a Franklin stove
**solar panels
**12V batteries
**a transformer 120V to 12/24V
**another small boat (canoe, kayak, motor)
**life rings
**marine paint
**small fans
**beautiful material in bulk to face ceiling (about 12' x 42') - tin would be
fantastic
**plywood for skinning the ceiling (about 12'x 42') - 1/2" or 3/4"
**pretty old single-pane windows
**handles, hooks, small cleats
**steel
**aluminum for constructing a gangplank
**railings
**water hose
We will haul away any material contributions. Please forward widely. Contact
tk@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org to donate.
MATERIAL DONATIONS:
We are partnering with companies that have ecologically
friendly materials and getting material contributions
to the Empty Vessel Project.
BuildItGreen? (www.bignyc.org), a salvaged building materials warehouse in
Astoria, has contributed some great slotted floorboards to face the cabin walls.
Mojo Fine Art Moving has been very generous with their trucks.
Do you know a company that might be interested in showcasing their products on
EV? Contact
pz@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org.
H E R O E S
David Sharps (nice barrels and fantastic documentation), The Doctor (wherever you are), Andy Baker (spur of the moment electrical supervision and the pump works again!)
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, Leo Raphaely, Peter Field,
Jeff Stark, Stephen, Lee Azzarello, Nathan,
ToddP?, Dan and Elizabeth, Trevor,
Brian Spinks, Andy Baker, Shellshag (Jen and Shell), Urban Stitch (Alessandro
and William), Paul Ford, Bez, Brian, Alex Lucas, Leah Beeferman, Brent Arnould,
The Dave Carter Quartet, Estee Pierce, Alison Prete, Jason Enghert, Rosie
Weinberg, Johns Manville, Black Label Bike Club, New York Harbor School, Eric
Forman, Gregory Zaslavsky, Leslie Stem, Andres Colapinto, Anney Fresh, Justin
Green,
BuildItGreen?, Mojo Fine Art Moving, Dave Sharps, David & Sharon Lefkowitz Hannah Marcus, Ruban, Cameron Hull, Bill Wasik, Alyssa Abeta & Zeb Stewart of Union Pool, Dylan, Arnie at the Puppet Lending Library, Josh Wienstien, Dept. of Transportation Bridge operators
W H A T I S T H I S ?
The Empty Vessel Project is an action, art, and sustainability experiment. We
salvaged EV, a WWII rescue boat, to create a space for re-imagining the
post-industrial urban environment. We are a non-profit, volunteer-run organization and encourage participation on all levels.
EV is moored on Brooklyn's Gowanus Canal. The boat is our first project. We
invite you to come join us on board to work and play.
We host work parties, movie nights, seminars, concerts, dinners, and workshops.
The Empty Vessel is available to realize your dreams and schemes.
This newsletter is your guide. It appears in your in box at the beginning of
each week, listing events and tracking changes. Can it be better? Contact
pz@emptyvesselprojectREMOVEANTISPAMMEASURE.org with suggestions.
--
PaulaZ - 11 Jan 2006
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