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Apparently if you weren't at this enormous grand opening party/fundraiser at the American Steel warehouse in West Oakland on Saturday, then you missed something pretty huge and fun. We, alas, were not, and therefore we, like many of you, must live vicariously through these pictures via Laughing Squid. They had 200 tons of sand dumped into the warehouse to set up their very own Burning-Man-in-the-City, beach party extravaganza, and many a hip kid danced to DJ sets and frolicked in one of five above-ground pools. Economic hard times breed creativity, so we look forward to catching wind of future happenings at this awesome looking art collective.
Above, a slideshow. After the jump, a few shots c/o Scott Beale. More here, along with video clips.
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WTF... The company my friend works for as an accountant was doing security for this party o_0 Small world
For something that was supposed to be an art fundraiser, this sure as hell felt like it was just an overpriced, glorified rave. Sure, there were a few cool metal sculptures and ONE art car, but for the most part, it was electronic music that drowned out all the live acts and a $30 hole burned into my pocket. The pictures make it look a lot cooler than it actually was.
tomato, tomahto
Were you there?
i was there. i was part of a crew that co-produced a stage with 20 carbon fire flowers and a setup that took all week to build (from parts that had already been assembled) and was actually pretty impressive.
http://symbiosisevents.com/photos/?level=album&id=15
we brought live and electronic music because that's what we wanted to hear, and that's what we put on the flyer. what were you expecting?? and what parties have you been to around here lately that were any better?
i heard Slayer played last night. maybe you should have spent your $30 on some good old-fashioned live music and a vigorous mosh to help you get some of that aggression out. no need to trash a massive collaborative party that gives you 500 times more than a corporate concert for the same price. Really, way to support the Bay Area creative community.
This looked like a lot of fun. I would have gone but had too many other events going on, but I definitely appreciate that these are happening. American Steel looks like a good venue.
Sorry funkbomb didn't like it, you can't please everyone.
I don't think you read my comment. The only aspect of the music I was criticizing was that the live bands were drowned out by the electronic crap. Also, there are plenty of people in the Bay Area Creative community that work real jobs too and don't need to have glorified raves to support themselves.
Slayer sucks and I went to a house party after the rave that was more fun.
looks cool whats it cost to bring in 200 tons of sand? seems like a lot ??? I think 1 ton would fill my apt on Geary
Don't worry, they passed on their costs to the people who went!
that's generally the idea when throwing an event. ever tried it?
BTW - this event was produced by people VOLUNTEERING their time to raise money for a community art space that will be used for large-scale collaborative projects for years to come.
it's so sad to see snark wasted on a project like this.
can't you go find a political blog to troll?
don't listen to the trolls on here.
you guys look like you did a kick ass job!
sorry i missed it.
Going to an event, disliking it, then stating my opinion on the internet is trolling?
No.
Big Art Studios lists the following on their site as the ventures they support, which is why I wanted to go:
- energy storage systems developers
- biodiesel producers
- worm farmers
- urban organic gardening advocates
- art car enthusiasts
- large scale sculptors
- kinetic and fire sculptors
- jewelers - chocolate makers
- painters
- piñata makers
- art car enthusiasts
- musicians
- photographers
-Robogames
Was I honestly wrong for expecting more artistic and creative endeavors than a few large metal and sand sculptures? Sure, they had the carnival scenery, and TWO booths of artists, but I went to support the local creative community and see what our local artists/ progressive thinkers were up to. If I wanted to go to a rave, I would have gone to a rave.
Sorry you didn't like the event, but that's the kind of party we throw. The website lists the following right on the front page:
4 ELECTRONIC STAGES
3 LIVE STAGES
200 TONS OF SAND
250,000 SQUARE FEET OF SPACE
1000's OF YOUR CLOSEST FRIENDS
1 CARNIVAL MIDWAY
5 SWIMMING POOLs
Every single one of the various fliers listed the music acts quite prominently, so if that's not what you were expecting, I don't know what to tell you.
The party was a celebration of the fact that the entire warehouse space is now devoted to art and other creative endeavors. The party itself was just that, a party, but I would encourage you to check the space out in a couple of months to see more of what it seems you are looking for.
It was my own fault for expecting to see the stuff that was listed on other pages.
Many props to you for doing all of those things that I was expecting to see.
Just to be clear, although I've worked with the crew at AmSteel in various capacities, I wasn't one of the organizers of this party. I was a little too busy producing my own wedding to do more than a little BBQ grilling for Sand By the Ton.
As for not getting in, I think the Fire Marshal had a lot to do with that, but I really don't know any of the details.
if the amount of tickets you sell is less than or equal to the load capacity of the building (which would presumably be a lot for a large warehouse) then there is no reason for the fire marshal to shut it down. the lack of organization, ie. lack of an exit route, most likely had much to do with the FM's decision. i don't blame him...
Jesus Christ, you're the type of guy that goes to a cancer benefit and then goes home to bitch and complain online that he didn’t see no cancer at the party.
I know man, I went to an AIDS benefit the other day and I didn’t see any AIDS the entire night. I was expecting to see guys in the Easy E stages of AIDS coughing up their lungs and shit, but instead it was just some kind of a party. Motherfuckers.
If I wanted to go to a rave I’d go to a giant warehouse party in the East Bay that advertised itself as having “4 ELECTRONIC STAGES, 3 LIVE STAGES…” Oh. Wait. Nevermind.
A ton of sand is less than 0.75 cubic yards.
You should stay home next time.
Just stay home and surf the net. Maybe download a few songs. That’ll make you feel better.
But seriously, stay home.
If you wanted sand, couldn't you have just gone to the beach?
not with 7000 other people...
well, i bought tickets. and i was excited to go. but i believe the event was just a TEENY BIT oversold. thanks. i appreciated the drive, paying the gas/toll & wasting my saturday night standing at the front of the mob waiting to get in...all to be refused entry at 1am. WTF?! a little greedy, ya think? when i first arrived, tickets were being SOLD. while there were plenty of people in line trying to pick up their will call tickets, or waving their actual tickets around trying to get noticed. you couldn't even fit in the performers!!! still waiting to hear back about my refund...
That sucks. I'm glad I got in and out early. Who are you contacting about refunds?
the only email available. info@bigmusicexperience.com i think it is. if i went early, i would most likely have left & come back. would have been screwed that way too. they weren't letting anyone with wristbands come back in either. maybe next time they should front the money for some of those rental fences, and make actual lines. that would help.
oh boy.....
This is an automatically generated Delivery Status Notification
Delivery to the following recipient failed permanently:
info@bigmusicexperience.com
Technical details of permanent failure:
DNS Error: Domain name not found
lol i had the wrong email, sorry...here it is~
info@thebigartexperience.com
More party pictures over here –
http://mvgals.net/gallery/sandbytheton-071109
It always cracks me up when people complain “Those pictures make it look a lot cooler than it actually was.” And then someone else posts another set of pictures of another hundred or so people smiling and having a great time.
People on E dancing and having a good time with electronic music playing. AWESOME!!!!!!!!!
E- Tards would smile if you gave them a lollipop and troll doll and blew on their skin.
E-tards? seriously?
you see thousands of people having a good time and you can just assume they're all on E...? based on what - electronic music playing? have you left the house lately? it's not 1999.
even if people were visibly intoxicated - every single one of them - the party was 21+ with ID. there were countless bars around. i'm not sure calling them all 'E-tards' is such a solid conclusion.
but hey - whatever makes you feel justified in not enjoying what thousands of people were apparently loving.
Dude, calm down.
I am perfectly within my rights to dislike this event, when I went expecting art and progressive activity. The justification of "look at all of these other people having fun" is a really weak argument.
you're right - i can't (and wouldn't) argue that you should have liked the event. it just makes me cringe to hear accusations of greed and lack of creativity when i personally know how hard everyone worked on this - for free - and i personally and photographed all sorts of amazing characters and creations.
it may not have been everything everyone expected, but the effort was sincere, and i feel like your criticism was unjustly harsh. it's a bit insulting for those of us in their late 20s, 30s, and even older (many of whom are veterans of those raver daze) to have such a heartfelt collaboration derided as a glorified rave full of E-tards.
now that more of the info is on the table, i hope you can see what everyone's intentions were... and where to go for a refund if you were unfulfilled.
I fully realize that a lot of effort went in to it and that it may have been my fault for expecting to see everything listed on the official site. At the time of my original post, I did not have the information that this money would be used for the events I was expecting to see there. I don't believe I ever attacked anyone's creativity or effort, just how this event was touted. I understand your point of view and I would hope that you would, at least somewhat, understand where my frustration was coming from.
OK since the people @ bigartexperience don't seem to give a shit, the people to contact about getting a refund are (if this is where you actually paid for your tickets)~
support@brownpapertickets.com
they are completely understanding & agree the shit they pulled that night was ridiculous.
it turns out there's an email circulating from the event organizers about what happened at the gate - which admittedly sucked:
----
Refunds are available by calling BROWN PAPER TICKETS at 1-800-838-3006 or emailing Support@BrownPaperTickets.com. Tell them the name of the event (sand by the ton) and provide your order info. You will receive a refund within a few days.
We are EXTREMELY sorry that you were not allowed in to the event. Based on our pre-sale numbers, it was determined that the door numbers would be reasonable. Unfortunately, by 10 pm, the fire marshal felt that the building was at capacity. We never expected such a turnout. We diligently worked for many weeks with the fire marshal and the city to prepare for our big Grand Opening. It was our first event and we learned SO MUCH. We promise to do better next time and hope that you can forgive us.
yes i did finally get that email. they also offered me 2 passes to their next event. hopefully they have learned from their mistakes.
Kudos to them for taking care of this shit.
Oh hey troll guy,
Check it out –
Here’s another set of pictures of about 100 other people that seemed to be smiling and having a great time last night.
http://eventvibe.com/events/sanfrancisco/SandbytheTon71109?showtab=Pics&action=gallery&gid=17450#main_name
Check out that E-tard, Man!
He’s nowhere near as miserable as I am right now. There must be something wrong with that guy.
But seriously. Be honest with me here. Are you one of the guys that just did that Oakland promo video that was really a bad rip off of the Cleveland video?
That's it, folks. You've now seen hundreds of pictures of people enjoying a rave. This proves, unequivocally, that I am not entitled to my own opinion about this event and that I am a troll. Good work.
@funkbomb - i think you've been really thoughtful in continuing this dialogue and really considerate of the points made... i appreciate that it may have been hard to get a coherent message from this many autonomous artists attempting to collaborate for the first time.
i also know, as an event organizer, that there are a lot of things that could have been done differently - and will ideally be amended for the future. it's perfectly valid to identify these points. it's also possible (and perfectly valid) for everything to go exactly as planned and for you to not enjoy it. sometimes that's how it goes.
thanks for the honest feedback - i don't think having a negative opinion inherently makes you a troll. trolls don't listen and make constructive, thoughtful replies - as you've clearly done here. well played, and appreciated.
z