URN 2012

My name is Paul Weir and I have experienced death in many forms including being legally dead myself... and my experience in that few minutes transformed my life into a creative whirlwind that has manifested much of my time, money and energy into a community ceremony called The All Souls Procession.  
In 2004 while cleaning up the site of the Procession finale I had a crystal clear vision of a large ceremonial Urn that would be transported thru the procession and filled with names, offerings and prayers for the dead and consumed in flame from a boom crane…  In 2005 we manifested that vision with help from Black Rock Arts Foundation.  And since then over 150,000 individual names, notes, prayers, letters, books of poetry, journals, etc. etc. have been consumed in flame at the finale of the All Souls Procession.  In 2011 over 35,000 participants marched in the procession and brought to it all manner of rolling altar, puppet, performance art, float, etc.
This 2012 All Souls Procession will be its 23rd year-we expect over 50,000 participants this year and for this momentous occasion we conceived a new sacred geometrical vessel.  A star dodecahedron to be precise.  Composed entirely of stainless steel, this new Urn will serve the community for many years to come..just as the first incarnation has for the last 7 years.
Our collaborators Thomas Valentine and Joe O'Connell from Creative Machines, have again worked with us to create this unique ceremonial piece for the 2012 commemoration.
Our cost to build this $7777 is comprised of materials, hours of water jet cutting time-which includes hundreds of pounds of garnet dust and 50 hours of cutting, and shop time for construction.  A retail value of this piece would be at least 3-4 times our ask.   The first Urn was not stainless steel and cost about $5000.
Our total budget for this year will be about $80,000.  This cost is entirely paid for by Many Mouths One Stomach, and we need your support in everyway possible to keep this event vital and always building capacity to serve more participants.