photo credit Laurie Segall

As mentioned in a previous post, I have been learning a bit about grant/proposal writing in our class art as practice.

My friend and 2nd-year Interdisciplinary Arts & Media MFA candidate Chelsey Shilling and I have been looking for and writing grants recently to get funding to build our own 3D printer to print food and biological material.  That’s right—we are going to print food. Yes, that is awesome. There is already some really interesting work being done in this area. Some have dubbed 2013 the year of the 3D printer, and in a recent article by Smartplanet.com it was projected that 3D printing will enter the mainstream soon.

One of the grant opportunities I found is perfect for individuals who are interested in Art and Science collaborative projects. The grant is called the Rhizome Commission Grant. Chelsey and I are interested in building the 3D printer for two performance/installation projects as well as a series of workshops on edible 3D printing.  Below are the three projects we are hoping to propose.

Photo credit: Fabcab

1. Cannibal Cake explores the practice of cannibalism and its metaphorical potential. In its first iteration of the piece, the artist cuts a life-size figure of a human out of angel food cake, projects his image onto the cake, and proceeds to serve the cake to his audience. The next iteration of the piece will require a life-size, edible sculpture of a person.

2. Honey Dress by Chelsey Shilling is a durational performance wherein Chelsey will print a dress out of honey and document its decomposition. In this piece, Chelsey will explore the codependent relationship between bees and humans, the idea of honey as healing agent, and honey as a symbol for the labors of communal connection.

3. We are interested in running a series of workshops on art, food, and 3D printing around the city of Chicago. We are interested in growing an awareness of art & science collaborative works as well as encouraging a growing community of citizen scientists in the Chicago area. Once these projects are complete, the printer will be given over to the artist group Image Unit who’s mission is to promote the work and professional development of Interdisciplinary Arts students at Columbia College Chicago while providing a forum for interdisciplinary practices within the larger Columbia community.