Kickstarter

Dear friends,

We hope you are all well and are delighted to bring you exciting updates as they unfold for the upcoming kite-flying season.

The kite is a symbol of relief, which means liberation and change.

Due to Hurricane Sandy, the Kite Machine will not return to Rockaway Beach next Summer. The good news is that the machine was safely in storage and was not damaged. We have been busy scouting out new locations to host the machine and our top choice is historic and wind-blown Governor’s Island in New York City.

Our Governor's Island expense breakdown for is as follows:

• Parks Permit: $25
• Public Art Insurance: $500
• Kites and Materials: $2500
• Transportation: $200
• Miscellaneous (upgrades, repairs, etc.): $500
• Goal: $3725

Contributions are tax-deductible and can be made online through our fiscal sponsor Fractured Atlas, a 501(c)(3) non-profit arts service organization. https://www.fracturedatlas.org/site/fiscal/profile?id=8273

We are delighted to encourage any in-kind and volunteer support as well. To learn more about other ways you can contribute, please contact us at kitecollective@gmail.com.

Bermuda Kite Video

Here is a preview of a video Lee made on how we make the bermuda kites for the Kite Machine, in case you were wondering! http://vimeo.com/60831001 This video was shown at the U-MAKE Kite-Making Retreat earlier this month as part of a kite-making workshop.

Kite Press

Check out our latest write-up in Discourse magazine, a publication by the Drachen Foundation: http://www.drachen.org/sites/default/files/Discourse_Issue-13-FINAL-web.pdf

The project has shown us that small change can eventually turn into big change. Let's continue making the skies kite-filled, colorful and uplifting for all to enjoy!

Please feel free to circulate our letter to interested friends and organizations. Thank you so much for all of your energy and support!

Blue skies and tail winds,

Lee, Whitney and Paolo
Kite-Makers and co-founders of the Kite Collective

The Kite Collective is an assembly of kite-makers that uses the sky as its main stage. The Kite Machine provides an outlet for awareness, creative expression and connection to our environment which lets us flourish in the urban landscapes where we live. We want to close that loop between consuming and discarding by making kites designed to be repaired and reused.

 www.cargocollective.com/kitecollective / kitecollective@gmail.com

Hello all,

The rewards are ready to be sent out (and some already have been!) but because of the holiday, they will be posted tomorrow.

To save paper, those who were supposed to get kite-making instructions will be getting a PDF sent to their email instead.

Please let us know when you receive your reward so we can ensure we didn't miss anyone. We hope you have as much fun with them as we had making them.

Best,

The Kite Collective

Thanks to your incredible support, the Kite Machine NYC's first season has been incredibly successful. Now it's time to get ready for the second installment, Kite Machine Chicago!

In NYC this summer, we distributed over 650 handmade, recycled kites to unsuspecting beachgoers, kite enthusiasts and everyone in between. We never realized what a personal impact this project would have on all of us emotionally and mentally to see people have so much fun! Fortunately, we don't have to freeze these memories to experience them. 

Kite Machine NYC will return for its second season next summer as its first sibling Chicago will be making its debut into the world! Right now we're up for a grant in the GOOD Maker contest to fund this expansion, and the best part is all it takes this time is a simple vote of support. The project with the most vote wins, so every opportunity to vote & spread the word is invaluable. In exchange, you'll be spreading simple pleasure above all things (quite literally!).

Like Kite Machine NYC, Kite Machine Chicago will dispense handmade kites built out of recycled materials to Chicagoans out of a refurbished vending machine at little to no cost to spread joyful experience, increase access to experiential arts education and further momentum for reuse projects to divert waste. We'll be present with the machine to support and get to know our kite fliers on open days, host workshops and increase access to experiential arts workshops.

We love you guys immensely, and we look forward to our next flight date!

Thanks to everyone who came out to support us this weekend. The feedback from the public was really great and we had lots of kites way up high at Rockaway on the boardwalk. The Kite Machine will be running every Saturday and Sunday throughout June. For future events and happenings, refer to the calendar here. Hope to see you all soon and thank you so much for your ongoing support!