The purpose of the fundraiser is to raise enough money in order for artist Nicholas Grider to be able to fund a trip over to Afghanistan as an 'embedded' photojournalist. The Army seems keen on this idea so it's mostly a matter of paying for the two big-ticket items Grider needs: 1) a full set of body armor including vest, "rifle plates," a helmet and goggles, and 2) return airfare for a commerical flight from the Kuwait airport back to the US. (The Army is giving Grider a free ride everywhere else.)

This jaunt may seem out-of-nowhere but what Grider is actually doing is following an Army Cavalry unit with which he was embedded in Fake Afghanistan in the Mojave desert. (There's a giant fake mideast at Fort Irwin, near Barstow, that's the size of Connecticut and that includes civilian first-generation emigrants from the mideast, fake reporters like Grider, and a giant laser tag system.) It'll be the first time anyone will have gotten to follow the entire process, from Fake to Real, so it's one of those once-in-a-lifetime things.


This relates to Nicholas Grider's thesis show, which is all about the experiences of Grider and his peers being fake-embedded in the Fake Mideast. Fellow CalArts students and grads have been invited to participate in the show, meaning that you should come to the panel discussion on the 11th or the traditional Thursday Night reception where you can see new work by Danielle Adair, Daiana Feuer, Liz Glynn, Jason Kunke, Eric Lindley, Suzanne Mejean, Matthew Siegle, and Carlin Wing, with additional support by Joel Evey and Zabih Khogyani.

There will be work for sale at a wide range of prices at the event in case you would like some art for your hard-earned money.