Mellifera for The Artery at Burning Man 2023

Hello, we are The Ceratina Collective. The Ceratina Collective is a group of 6 local New Orleans set designers, filmmakers, and installation artists that are working on a piece for Burning Man 2023 called Mellifera at The Artery. We are truly excited for the opportunity to show work at Burning Man because it is known for its larger-than-life artwork, and it will help propel our creative careers both individually and as a collective. Our installation is material-centric, meaning we intend to use all recyclable and refurbished materials and repurpose them for our sculptural elements. Our team believes in sustainability and would like to show that elementary materials can also be used to make fine art. There are many parts to this project such as designing an installation that considers the environmental elements that we will face, making sure we are mentally and physically prepared to be self-reliant and safe during our time in the desert, and financing the entire project ourselves.

We are reaching out to our community in the hopes that you will donate whatever you can to help us prepare for us for this project. Most of us are freelance creatives and have years of experience either working on feature film sets or creating art. Some of us have even taught art professionally. But what we all can confidently say is that we truly have a passion for what we do as artists and want to continue to learn and grow. By donating, your money will help fund the following for all 6 of us:

- Food, water, fuel: $2,500

- Lodging/Transportation (including gas): $ 7,000

- Materials/Tools: $2,500

- Camp Gear: $3,000

- Studio Space: $2,000

This would be the first time any of us attend Burning Man and to be asked to build an installation for the organization as first-time attendees is a big deal. This project is headed by two women of color, Elvira Castillo and Katalea Ford. They are both active members of the New Orleans Film and artistic landscape. The team also includes Zach DePolo, Hannah Garatie, Anderson Funk, and Dru Murphy. Their experience and background include engineering, ceramics, set design, special fx makeup, etc. We are confident in the skills we have to complete this project and hope you would consider helping us achieve this huge goal of ours.

After Burning Man is over, we will exhibit our installation along with behind-the-scenes photos and video of our time in Burning Man at The Front Gallery in October 2023.

If you're interested in donating materials, finding out more about what our installation piece consists of, or have any questions, please feel free to email us and follow us on Instagram @ceratinacollective.

Donation Tiers:

Thank you,

Elvira Castillo

Katalea Ford

Zach DePolo

Hannah Garatie

Anderson Funk

Dru Murphy

Ben Matheny