I’m pleased to introduce a campaign to raise funds for my art. I call it the Concha Fund. As I venture into my attempt to turn my concha sculpture into a tangible consumer product, I’m finding myself in need of an industrial sewing machine, space, and extra hands.
Throughout the year, I’ll be making available different types of original works and merchandise inspired by older works. One month you can see something like a t-shirt or maybe a set of pins. Each wave of items will need to meet a minimum crowd requirement to fund it. When that minimum is met, the wave is a go and the merchandise will be created and delivered to all the supporters. Some merchandise will have extras produced and made available to purchase here on DanielDelReal.art.
in March I introduced the first wave of merchandise on my personal Facebook page and successfully funded it with the backing of 31 people. Only 25 needed to back it to fund it. It was nice to see that it did so well. The design was this t-shirt from my artwork titled “Year of the Tiger”
Orders from this wave are being fulfilled right now. Additionally, the following sizes are still available at $25 each including shipping within the US:
1x Womens Medium
2x Youth Medium
3x Unisex Medium
1x Unisex Small
1x Unisex XS
1x Unisex XL
If you’d like to order one, please send me an email to delreald@sbcglobal.net with “Neon Tiger” on the subject line.
Moving on to April, the second wave of merchandise is here and awaiting full backing. This one is from a serigraph titled “Heliotrope” from 2010. It’s a print I created for an art show about flowers. I’ve turned it into yet another t-shirt. This one titled “Sun Followers” is $30 shipped or $25 with local pick up. It needs the backing of 25 people to fully fund it. Watch this video to see the t-shirt and its May flower vibes:
The design is perfect for the upcoming Spring and Summer months. If you would like to back this wave please send me an email to delreald@sbcglobal.net with the subject line “Sun Followers.” If we can get 25 backers the t-shirts will be produced. You’ll need to pay for your t-shirt ahead of production. I accept payments through PayPal, Venmo, and Zelle. You can also pay cash or check in person at the Global Village Welcome Center. You’ll also be able to pick up there if you choose to.
Lastly, there is another offering in April. Before I show you that, let me start by telling you about it. In March we celebrated Women’s History Month with an event called International Women’s Gathering. Prior to the event at a staff meeting, we decided that everybody would wear one of two things; purple outfits or outfits inspired by their homelands. Me being the extra person I am decided I’d make myself a slightly sophisticated Mexican look in purple. To do that I made myself a purple bandana and painted a sun hat. While shopping for fabric, I settled on a satin fabric that had a pattern of butterflies and pansies.
I settled on this because it reminded me of mom. She would always be happy tending to her garden in the spring and summer months. In Spanish, pansies are called pensamientos, or “Thoughts.” They're said to evoke nostalgia and memories. Thats exactly what they evoke in me. With my theme in hand I set out to paint my sun hat to match my bandana
With my accessories finished I simply put on some purple pants and a lilac shirt to create my Mexican look and wore that to the International Women’s Gathering
Pretty cool, huh? Well since that was the only day I’d ever wear those accessories, I’ve decided to auction them off in a Facebook comments auction. The name of the two piece set is called “Thoughts.” You can find that auction at this link: https://www.facebook.com/1082603625/posts/10228243345123789/?d=n
If you don’t have a Facebook account but would like to bid on this set, you can cast a proxy bid by emailing me at delreald@sbcglobal.net with subject line “Thoughts.” It’s my hope that these go to somebody who can appreciate the story and originality behind them but more importantly, use them more than once! 😂
There you have 3 ways you can support my art while treating yo self to some original goodies! Neon Tiger t-shirts are available until they sell out. Both Sun Followers and Thoughts are open for backing and bidding until April 15. If fully backed Sun Followers merch will deliver sometime in May.
Before you leave, I want to share with you the inspiration for the next wave of merchandise. I’ll be creating something inspired by my work titled “Rainbow Bust: Behold.” I had originally created this work to donate to the Indiana Youth Group’s annual fundraiser some years ago. The work is both a celebration of the LGBTQ community and a commentary on how they are “othered” by straight cis people. The wave will launch in early May and if funded will be delivered in June in time for Pride.
