What is the art fundraiser?

The Alchemy Art Fundraiser is a combination of a physical event and subsequent online fundraiser that is designed to gather funds for artists to bring their creations to Alchemy. Rather than having a panel of people decide what art should be funded for the burn, we let the community decide!

I’m interested in getting money from the fundraiser, but will otherwise fund the whole project myself. What should I do?

We appreciate you being willing to bring your art to the burn no matter what! Please, contact us at arfundraiser@alchemyburn.com to learn how to complete your project application and budget. Please, remember though, if you choose this route, you are responsible for getting the completed project to the burn, just as everyone else, regardless of the amount of money you get from the fundraiser.

What happens if I can no longer bring my project to the burn?

If you are unable to bring your project to the burn, you are expected to either return ALL the money provided by the fundraiser, OR have someone else bring it on your behalf (we can assist you in finding someone). If the money is not returned or the project is not brought to the burn, you will be unable to request funding in the future.

HOW DOES THE ART FUNDRAISER WORK?

Think “burner science fair.”

You come to the Fundraiser and make your donation to get in the door. You’ll receive a paper ballot where you can then allocate each dollar of your donation (in whole dollar amounts) to the artist(s) of your choice. You walk around, look at the rockin' displays of the artists who want your cash while sipping your drink and listening to music. Then, once you've decided who gets your money, make notes on your ballot and turn it in at the designated station. That’s it!

A minimum donation of $10 is required for entry. But why stop there?! Don't! The greater your donation level, the more SUPER SWEET SCHWAG you can get. Whatever your donation level, you can allocate every single dollar you donate to the artists.

WHERE DO I START?

Start with your idea. Sketch a drawing and write in as much detail as you can as to what your creative idea is.

What does it represent?
What does it look like?
How big is it?
What colors will you use?
What special effects might it have?
How will people interact with it?
What can people learn from it?

Then, once you’ve got your idea thoroughly sketched out, you begin making a budget.

Does your idea incorporate this year's theme? If so, how?

WHAT ARE ALL THE IMPORTANT DATES I NEED TO BE AWARE OF?

Application deadline: TBA
Cross pollination deadline: TBA
Art Fundraiser: TBA

HOW DO I MAKE A BUDGET?

Your budget must be made using our Google Spreadsheet template. View our instructions for how to do that here.
Not sure how to get started? You can view this example budget we’ve created called Project Burn the Bunny. A giant paper maché bunny that gets lit on fire during the burn as a mini-effigy. This budget is VERY basic but should provide a good starting point if you don’t really know how to get started.

Unlike projects submitted to the Alchemy Art Fundraiser, Cross Pollination Grants are reviewed by the Alchemy Art Fundraiser Team. This team will determine who will receive the grants and how much funding they’ll receive. Up to 30% of the Funding Pool will be used for Cross Pollination Grants. Any Grant that is not fully funded will have the opportunity to participate in the regular and online fundraiser to raise the rest of their funds.

WHERE DOES THIS WHOLE FUND BOOSTING THING COME IN? HOW DOES IT WORK?

Fund Boosting (formerly known as fundmatching) is a way for us to amplify what happens at the Art Fundraiser event. So, here’s a quick example with some easy numbers to help illustrate how it works. Say there are three projects at the event, projects A, B, and C. At the end of the event, all projects all together collected a sum total of $1,000. Let’s also say that there is a Fund Boosting pool of $10,000 to go around.

Of that $1,000 collected at the event, say that each project collected this much:
Project A: $500 = 50% of the total $1,000 collected.
Project B: $200 = 20% of the total $1,000 collected.
Project C: $300 = 30% of the total $1,000 collected.

This means that Project A gets the $500 it collected at the event PLUS 50% of the Fund Boosting pool, which would be $5,000 for a total of $5,500. Project B would get $200 + 20% of the Fund Boosting pool, $2,000, for a total of $2,200. Project C would get $300 + $3,000 = $3,300. If a project is eligible to receive more than its maximum budget, that overage is put back into the Fund Boosting pool.

WHAT IS A MINIMUM BUDGET?

This budget is the amount of money you MUST collect at the Fundraising event and through the Online Fundraiser. If by the end of the Online Fundraiser your project has not collected enough money, including Fund Boosting, to meet your Minimum Budget, then you will receive no money at all.

For the Minimum Budget, think “most basic needs.” How much money do you need to pay for the most basic and fundamental needs for your vision to be realized?

Going back to the Burn the Bunny example project...

As it’s a paper maché project, having newspaper and flour are essential to the project. Without those things, it can’t be paper maché. However, the multicolored sequins, while pretty, may not be necessary for the vision of “paper maché Bunny that’s going to burn” to be realized.

WHAT IS A MAXIMUM BUDGET?

Your maximum budget is the amount of money you need to raise in order to fully fund your project with bells and whistles. You may be as elaborate as you like.

WHAT IS A CROSS POLLINATION GRANT?

Got an old project that's collecting dust? Maybe it just needs a fresh coat of paint or to have some of those worn out two-by-fours replaced? Or what if you've got a Totally Badass Project that you brought to another event (or a past Alchemy or Euphoria!) and want to showcase your vision at Alchemy? The Cross-Pollination Grant is for YOU!

This grant is to help already existing projects that have fallen by the wayside to get the extra boost they need to get them to Alchemy. The grant is also for projects that have appeared at other events, including past Alchemy and Euphoria events.

Up to 30% of the initial funding pool will be used toward Cross-Pollination Grants. Any grants who do not receive enough funds will be allowed to attend the regular art fundraiser and online fundraiser to try and raise the additional funds.

ARE THERE ANY BUDGET RESTRICTIONS?

All art projects require a significant element of creation.
All projects need to be created and permanent/temporary to the burn or consumable onsite.
No funding for infrastructure (tents, stages, chairs, playa-tech, etc.)

The following items may appear in your budget, but with some restrictions:

Swag/Gifts can only be up to 10% of the total budget
Single items over $100 that can be rented should be rented, loaned, or provided by the artist (i.e. generators, tools, stoves, etc.)
Gas money*
Rent/studio space*
Other transportation*

*These may be included IF AND ONLY IF they are directly related to your project and ONLY your project. For example, if you have to rent a truck that you would otherwise not need to rent in order to get your project to the burn, then you may include gas and transportation in the budget: If you’re taking the vehicle that you would normally be taking and aren’t incurring any additional expense due to bringing your project, then you may not include transportation costs.

Here is a short list of things that will not be funded through this process:

Tickets to the event
Alcohol
Projects in which little to no creation is involved
Projects that are gifts/swag for participants. All projects need to permanent/temporary to the burn or consumable onsite.
Projects without a significant outward-facing component or projects that only allow a small portion of the community to experience them
Infrastructure (tents, stages, chairs, playa-tech, etc.)
Items prohibited at the event: fireworks (even if they're legal in Georgia), firearms, wish lanterns/sky lanterns/flying paper lanterns
Anything that violates local, state, or federal law
Anything deemed by the Alchemy Art Fundraiser Team to be unreasonably dangerous or reckless

The Alchemy Art Fundraiser Team reserves the right to reject items in your budget that are not listed in the restrictions above. With that said, we will discuss this with you beforehand and make every reasonable effort to negotiate an amicable solution. We want to do everything we can to make your vision a reality!

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE MOST OVERLOOKED THINGS IN BUDGET MAKING?

The most overlooked items in a budget are very simple items. Does your project require power? If so, how do you plan on providing power to your project? Make sure you include things like generator rental, power cords, power strips, screws, nuts, bolts, power tool rental. Everything you use in your project should be listed in your budget.

IS THERE A LIMIT ON THE NUMBER OF DIFFERENT PROJECTS I CAN SUBMIT?

Yes. Two projects.

IS THERE A MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF FUNDING I CAN REQUEST?

No, there isn’t. However, with that said, be mindful of the importance of a balance with your budget size and the likelihood of meeting your goal.

If we feel that you are asking for too much money, we will do what we can to work with you to bring it down. Unfortunately, we can’t nail down exactly what would constitute “too much money” until we have a complete picture of what people are requesting.

Projects from as low as $60 to approximately $2,500 have been funded in the past.

IS THERE A MINIMUM AMOUNT OF FUNDING I CAN REQUEST?

Yes, the minimum amount of funding is $50

WHAT IF I DO NOT RAISE ENOUGH FUNDS TO MEET MY MINIMUM BUDGET, INCLUDING FUND BOOSTING?

If you do not meet your qualifying budget, all funds raised for your project at the event will go back into the funding pool to be distributed to other projects.

WHAT IF I QUALIFY FOR MORE MONEY THAN MY MAXIMUM BUDGET?

No artists will receive more money than what’s stated in their Maximum budget.

IF I DON’T MEET MY MINIMUM BUDGET AT THE EVENT, CAN I STILL TRY TO MEET THAT BUDGET BY PARTICIPATING IN THE ONLINE FUNDRAISER?

Yes, you may still try to reach your minimum through the Online Fundraiser (dates TBD). If you do not reach your minimum by the time the Online Fundraiser ends, the money you had raised up to that point would go back into the funding pool to distribute amongst the other projects.

WHAT DO I NEED TO BRING TO THE FUNDRAISING EVENT?

Think science fair. You will need a small presentation that includes all of your funding requests information (budget, LNT plan, description of project, small replica if possible.) You need to bring a presentation that will convey the creative idea for your funding request as well as convince people that you can pull it off. Remember: you’re trying to convince them to give you their money!

IF I WORK IN LEADERSHIP WITH FAI (TEAM LEAD, BOARD MEMBER, EVENT LEAD, ETC.), AM I ALLOWED TO SUBMIT A PROJECT TO THE FUNDRAISER?

Yes, and this includes people helping manage the Art Fundraiser itself. However, anyone submitting a project is automatically removed from any decision-making process involving the distribution of funding.

WHAT IF I NEED HELP?

Please email us at artfundraiser@alchemyburn.com. We are here for YOU! Any questions you have regarding budgets, fire safety plans, transportation concerns, anything at all, can be answered by us.