We had a remarkable number (40+) of SEED $$ grant applicants this year, and granted a whopping 20!! art projects with approx $20k. There are some friendly + familiar Apo artists, some brand-new-to-Apogaea artists + even a kiddo artist (a first for us!) included in this round.
The BubblePuff Machine
Angela Japangela Andersen
Try to remember your first memory of fire (no really, try for a minute…!). Perhaps it’s blowing out candles or striking a match. “Time is intangible just like a flame; Nostalgia is a pretty pyro-game.” Re-kindle that child-like wonder with the Cutest Little Fire Sculpture Ever: “The BubblePuff Machine.” She requires minimal attention-span — but you can’t walk past her without inserting a token, twisting her knob, and seeing at least one fire god! Small, safe, subtle, memorable, this upcycled bubblegum machine is guaranteed to spark joy in your weary heart.
The Pyre
Bones Belfontaine
A witch burns at the stake, but look into her face and what do you see? The Pyre explores the fears, biases, and insecurities that drive us to condemn others.
Casa Fauxnita
Julie Claes, Zane Claes, Olivia Wolf & TJ Rivers
A parody of an iconic Colorado landmark, Casa Fauxnita is a big pink party palace full of surprises! Her interactivity will include cliff diving Barbies, DJ dance parties, an exploratory cave, impromptu puppet shows, secondary story views accessible from a rock climbing wall, and more!
The Fates
Bella Schauer
The Fates are three mirrors that reflect the viewer’s image across three archetypes: the maiden, the mother, and the crone. The viewer is invited to sit and reflect on these stages of life and to wonder which stage they feel most connected to.
Eternal Youth
Samuel Harris
Inspired by the iconic potion vial from Death Becomes Her, this mirror sculpture captures the seductive beauty of a magical elixir that promises transformation and eternal youth. Rendered in deep purple tones with gold accents and a faceted, jewel-like form, the piece evokes both glamour and mystery. As viewers move around it, shifting reflections invite them to pause, look closer, and see themselves from a new perspective.
Light Spot, Episode 3, Parts 1–3
So Rachel / Camp Lights Pot
Follow the light to the rock you passed a hundred times, unseeing. Choose your color. Watch the stone go amber, teal, rose — the same formation, made new by your hand.
This is the hour the land was always waiting for.
Femtide
Evil Twin
An experiment in impermanence. FemTide is a set of minimalistic human figures primarily made from found objects: metal, disintegrating plaster cast faces, and ambient LEDs.
Pixel Perfect Revolt
Vapril
A rhythmic fusion of digital nostalgia and spectral energy — every button press transforms musical tones into towering pillars of colored flame. Inspired by retro gaming and the raw spectacle of pyrotechnics, this sculpture acts as a bridge between electronic sound and physical fire. It invites participants to become conductors of the elements, turning rapid button patterns into a collaborative, multisensory performance that blurs the line between instrument and artist.
Fox Art Car
Carolyn Gardella
The Fox Art Car is a playful, glowing sculpture in motion that invites people to step inside and become part of the experience. Riders share a cozy, social space where conversation, laughter, and connection unfold as the fox moves through Apogaea. Blending light, movement, and sound, it creates moments of joy, curiosity, and community for all who encounter it.
Crystal Cairn
Robert G. Burch
One evening I was rock climbing with my friend. We left in the dark and became profoundly lost. The sun was setting and we were preparing for a chilly night. By some stroke of luck we saw a cairn. Every culture since the dawn of time has stacked stones. One may have saved my life, and that’s my reason for beginning this series.
Present Tense (Soft Return)
Saskia Stray / Stray Found
An intimate, Victorian-inspired Pepper’s Ghost installation created in response to sudden loss and the idea that presence doesn’t end when a body does. Participants approach a cabinet of curiosities and activate a brass switch or hand crank to summon a luminous, floating image — an intentional ritual that invites stillness and reflection.
Twilight Anima Rising
Mardi Storm
A giant unicorn rises out of the earth with ferocious strength, horn covered in mirrors. For centuries, humans have chased the unicorn for the healing properties of its horn, known to purify poisoned waters and heal the sick. Except, these mirrors are reflecting you — as only WE can solve this problem, not a magical creature. Vintage art from Burning Man 2005.
"Life or Death"
Carrie McLaughlin
This work will be my take on how everyone can view life in a positive way, from the cored apple to the whole apple – or in a negative way, from the whole apple to the cored apple. For me, I’m viewing it in a negative light – not necessarily because I’m a pessimist, but because that’s sort of how life and fate has treated me. A lot of life’s curveballs have led me to feeling hopeless, being diagnosed with depression and anxiety, and left me scarred and bruised. But, above all, I’m still an apple, even though I’ve been cored.
Jellyfish Lights
Michael Seymor & Nathan Koral
150 miniature jellyfish along the road from Center Camp to the 300’s that light up at night and help guide your way through the event.
Strange Loop
Perpetual Design
A twisting paradoxical sculpture, with a forced perspective during day shifting into a LED pretzel at night displaying strange yet familiar pixel loops.
Quantum Orb
Beck Hargrove & Katy McClure
Our idea is to create a large truncated icosahedron, a spherical polyhedron composed of 144 steel panels. The ball will be a fabricated steel sculpture standing around 5’ high. There are 4 truncated icosahedra nested inside each other. The orb will be fabricated into 8 hemispheres and bolted together on site. This piece will rotate using a gearing system.
GoGo Lane: Chronos Velocity
Laci Skinner
Inspired by the theme Mythos & Mechanica, this piece reimagines the rugged Velvet Path as a mythical “time-slip” wormhole where industrial machinery meets the legend of the speed-god GoGo. Independent, glowing “gear-bollards” cast safe, wire-free light onto the uneven terrain, while a pulsing “runway” of ground-flush neon guides travelers through the challenging ravine crossing. Travelers are invited to spin a kinetic “charging wheel” at the entrance to “lubricate the gears” of time — turning a simple shortcut into an immersive, futuristic archaeological site.
Spin Me Gently
Aleesha Anderson
Five omnidirectional spinning dichroic light sculptures, arranged in a ring, cast an immersive field of shifting rainbow light and shadow that participants can step into and explore. Standing roughly seven feet tall, each kinetic sculpture features a spinning lamp with panels of stained Baltic birch and acrylic laminated with dichroic film, mounted on a wooden pedestal. Moved by wind or by hand, the installation transforms the space through rotating patterns and color-shifting reflections, creating a warm, magical atmosphere that invites connection, curiosity, and wonder.
Mneme Taweret
Cory Sutela
Mneme Taweret is a propane fire art sculpture grounded in mythos and mechanica, drawing from the hippocampus, the river goddess Taweret, and the “river horse” lineage of the hippopotamus (the brain’s center of memory creation – also known as mneme). Fabricated from steel sections and plate, designed to be wind-resistant and heat-efficient), it features low-pressure warming flames rising through a geometric structure and a dynamic poofer element that animates the form. Designed as the central gathering point for Hippo Camp US, the piece provides warmth, visibility, and a shared focal point for our community.
Frog Shrine of the Devoted
Kathryn Johnson
From the moment I stepped foot on the Valdez land I was mesmerized by the shrieks of what DPW dubbed the “murder frogs” — a mystery and an instant tale of lore and legend, because despite their cries, they were nowhere to be seen. Hence I introduced the community to the Frog Shrine of the Devoted: a tribute to these beautiful creatures that represent a crucial chain in the local ecosystem and a reminder of our connected world.
