The Anarchist Portrait Project

I have begun a project to paint Portraits of Anarchists in front of the Red and Black (Colors may vary) I will be attempting to put up to 40 hours a week into this project. It will depend on how much support it gets, so please donate or help promote this on your social media.

UPDATE: It looks like we currently have Noam Chomsky, Steve Ignorant, Kevin Carson, Chuck Munson, Punk Johnny Cash, Paula Carter, and Pete Earle who have agreed to be subjects for the portraits. There are others, but I am still uncertain to which ones will stick with it, so I will announce more names later. The first painting is hanging at that Artmoshphere gallery on Troost in Kansas City. I am trying to get a more diverse group so we are seeking more women and trans people.  We have had some donate various art supplies. You can also donate supplies, visit the Anarchist Portrait Project Wish List on Dick Blick. We have talked about compiling a book with the paintings, it may be something more than just paintings. More details on that in the near future. We really need any financial support we can get also. I am still working without any studio space. You can see my art at shanethayer.com

Why it needs to be done.

First Anarchist Portrait In Progress

Through history we have recorded the images of the wealthy and powerful rulers of society. Those who have ties to the state and church were traditionally painted. Art was funded by the church and the rulers of society. Museums are mostly owned and run by the state. I wish to crowdsource the project as opposed to looking towards one powerful ruling entity to make this happen. This is an attempt to add to the paintings that exist in museums around the world. I want to create a body of work that records anarchists. I am using high quality materials the paints are Williamsburg handmade Oil Paints which are made from pigments that have proven to last the test of time. The initial financial asking is to secure the studio as well as materials to support the project. It does not pay my basic need like gas, rent etc… It is focused on just funding the production of the art.

Art for anarchist museums.

The reason I want the materials to be so high quality is so we can create a body of work that will last the test of time, so that if an anarchist society is not achieved for another 500 years these pieces will be around to hang in anarchist museums when we have reached our goals.

I wish for this body of work to go down in history. We visit museums and see the powerful rulers of a time past. One day our ancestors can visit a museum and see us. The anarchists that opposed a new society, those who stood for what was right in the face of the violent rulers of the past.

Please Help

Please, help financially if you can. If you can not, then you can help us by sharing this project and helping it to get attention. Share through social media or through e-mail. Help by posting the Chip-in widget on your site. You can blog about it and help get attention and link back to this project that way. Any help is appreciated.

What Will Be Done With The Paintings?

The paintings will be available through different forms. I will make prints available as cheap as possible. I will be working on putting together a gallery showing for the collection. What galleries and cities? I don’t know, that will depend on how much support they get, so your support is important. Depending on support we will also attempt to eventually put out a book. The funding and specifics will all depend on the support it gets. It may just be on a print to order place, or more all depending on the support this receives. So what happens to the work will depend on the support it receives. Some of the paintings will be up for sale to help me break even on this project.

What Do You Get for Financial Support?

$10 A thank you listed on the website and access to members only blog giving regular updates on progress.
$25 A link to your site on Gonzo Times on posts about the Anarchist Portraits Series.
$100 Listed as Financial Support online and at any show that is set up for the Anarchist Portrait series.
$500 An original Oil Painting 12×12 of Emma Goldman
$1,000 I will paint an original portrait of you, or of your choice. 24×36 aprox.
$2,000 You can own one of the original Anarchist Portrait paintings in the series 36 x 46
$60,000 You get over 1,000 hours of work over a 52 week period. This covers hourly labor and materials for paintings. That can be a lot of paintings over a year. This ensures I have a studio and materials and gives half of the studio time during a work week to building up art for you or your organization. This covers my basic necessities and gives you the art you want as half of my time in studio will be focused on your art. This can equal a lot of paintings depending on the size and complexity. To give you an idea, the Emma Goldman piece took about 3 hours, the Anarchist Portraits have been taking about 40 hours.