Art Basel which the New York Times described as “the world's
biggest and best 20th-century art fair” has teamed up with the
crowdfunding website Kickstarter to help fund non-profit arts projects. While
the non-profits organize the project Art Basel’s assistance will be in the
exposure of the project to their expansive network of supporters along
with the kudos of the association.
But crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter, Indigogo and Sponsume to mention just three
of the plethora of these sites on the web are not just for the big hitters. They
are available for all levels of projects including the modest. At Sponsume the
minimum campaign target is just $300.
It’s not a new idea, the Catholic Church, Red Cross,
Oxfam, name your favourite charity, have been doing it for years. How it
differs is that the money given is going to an identified project rather than
an organization’s coffers. And in the majority of cases there is a tangible
reward as well as the warm and fuzzy feeling for the generosity.
For project initiators, apart from the money, there
is, perhaps more importantly, feedback from their community about the perceived
value of the project. If friends and relatives, the most likely donors, are unimpressed
perhaps a re-think of the project is called for.
As with any fund raising activity a lot of hard work
and strategic thinking is required, perhaps even more than that required for
the project.
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