One of the most genius and not-too-pushy forms of self promotion for artists that I've ever come across has to be Kickstarter. If you've got an idea for a project that you need to generate some on-the-fly financing for, Kickstarter gives you a forum to do just that. You can lay out your case, show a video of what you're doing or are prepared to do, offer rewards and incentives, and provide updates as to how the process is going. The only catch is also some profound motivation for finishing what you start: Kickstarter is all or nothing funding, meaning: if a project creator doesn't reach their full funding goal in the time specified, then no one that pledged money is delivered to the creator.

But you might be surprised at how enthusiastic people can be when you crowd-source your inspiration, drive and energy. Below are some quick previews of some Kickstarter projects we're following, some that have already met their goals and some that are very much within grasp. Take a look at the project homepages and see if any of them strike a chord with you; you may be superstitiously or spiritually inclined to rack up a little art karma for $10 or more:

Camper Kart by Kevin Cyr

Inspired by the resourcefulness and autonomy described in Cormac McCarthy's The Road, Kevin Cyr was compelled to make a piece of functional, habitable sculpture that he dubbed "Camper Kart," which we've mentioned a few times here on this blog. Ultimately meant to be a mobile unit built into a shopping cart, Cyr declared his ambition to be no less than the construction of the "ubiquitous urban object." Cyr set his project goal at $2000, and offered up donation incentives at several price points (ranging from a woven patch at the $10 level to a 16x20" archival print at the highest level of $175). In around 6 weeks his goal was met, and Kevin's Camper Kart dreams were realized. You can see the finished piece, as well as other amazing sculptures and paintings he's created, on Kevin's website.

FV Meridian; Wrights Wharf, Portland, Maine by Mark Marchesi

Mark Marchesi's Kickstarter project is about his ability to continue a documentary project of Portland Maine's working waterfront. He is seeking a total of $2,000 funding in order to buy materials needed to continue work (the analog has become less cost-effective than ever, and Mark shoots with a large format camera). From his statement:

As the fisherman grow more scarce and their vessels rust at the wharf an entire network of processors, wholesalers and shipping agents also suffer. As the revenue stream that this network produces dries to a trickle, the wharves that they occupy become vulnerable to rezoning and at risk of being lost to the fishery forever.

Right now it looks like parts of the waterfront will be preserved for the commercial fishing industry for a long time to come. But the industry as a whole is in such a precarious position nothing is certain. The documentary project I am working on is an important one. I try to believe that fish stocks will bounce back and a way of life will not be lost. But in case of the worst, this project will at least preserve Maine's oldest surviving industry on film.

Mark's project has 16 days to go with Kickstarter's all-or-nothing funding, and you have just got to love the incentive offered at the pledge level of $50 or more:

A quart of home cooked lobster and haddock chowder made with locally caught seafood purchased on the Portland Waterfront AND an 11" x 14" limited edition print from this series in an archival matte AND a "Preserve Working Waterfronts" magnet.

Learn more about Mark's project on his Kickstarter pageor at his blog.

We've written about Rachel Sussman and Jon Gitelson, our last two Kickstarter artists before, but both are in the closing days of their project so it's your last chance to donate, receive prizes from each artist for supporting their work, and rack in that good karma for helping someone realize a dream.

Jon Gitelson has already met his funding goal for his book project, Scavenger Hunt, but it's worth mentioning that at a $25 pledge (which you can still make on the site), you'll receive an 8"x10" signed print from the book, which is a steal. For double that you get a double-down gift of any 10"x16" spread from the book of your choice.

Spruce Gran Picea, 9,550 years old, Fulufjället, Sweden by Rachel Sussman

Rachel Susmann's project is so righteously awesome, multidisciplinary, collaborative, exotic and romantic all at once. Teaming up with biologists, she's been researching the world's oldest living organisms (2,000 years old and older!) and traveling to places near and far to document them. Her project scope has been ambitious, as is her funding goal of $10,000. With just over two weeks to go, Rachel is nearly within reach of her project's total realization. She only needs $354 more to be able to find and photograph 5,000 year old moss in the Antarctic peninsula, find a 2,300 year old Banyan Fig tree in Sri Lanka, find up to 43,000 year old clonal shurbs in Tanzania and Australia, and go under the sea in Spain to locate and document 100,000 year old clonal sea grass. Rachel's also offering several incentive gifts for various donation levels as well; visit her Kickstarter page for more details, or her blog for more frequent project updates.

If you've got a little cash on hand, helping one of these artists realize their project dreams is a really worthy way to spend it. And if you've got a great idea yourself, why don't you get busy with your own Kickstarter project?