JacklynPryor.com

Pink: A (Love) Courier Service Fundraiser
Sunday, July 13
United States Art Authority (510 W. 29th St.)
6pm-2am, $5 at door if you wear pink or come on bike, $10 otherwise
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The concept is rather simple: you write a love note, then hand it over to the Pink crew. They, in turn, will then peddle off to hand-deliver the love letter (anywhere in the city) via bicycle. It’s novel, inventive and plain ‘ol sweet—plus, the spectacle doubles as an interactive art installation.

The project, which started in 2006 during Austin's First Night celebrations, is the brainchild of local artist Jaclyn Pryor. Pink recently returned from a successful stint in Portland.

Pryor and her team of pink-jumpsuited cupids will open up the Pink Love Factory on Sunday from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. at the United States Art Authority. The one-off event, which will include live music by The Squirrels, Damp Heat, Puff Puff and the Receivers, WinoVino, The Pelicks, and DJs Orion and Aquamanchill (aka Professah Funkensteen), seeks to help raise money for Pink's next road trip and installation in Chicago later this summer.

Austinist recently tracked down Pryor to ask her about the evolution of the project and her upcoming trip to Chicago. You can check out the quick interview after the jump.

How has the project changed or grown since it first began?

Doing a project of this scale in a far-away city is quite challenging. When we first did the project in Austin back in 2006, we had an incredible team of volunteers, especially folks in the bicycle activism communities.

When we go to a new city (Portland, Chicago...), we need to start from scratch and figure out how the various communities that might be interested in working on this project network and communicate, and then we have to tap into that network. It's a great deal of work to do.

Luckily, there is now a dedicated core team of collaborators from Austin who work with me in getting us ready to go to a new city, and helping mobilize additional enthusiasm and support once we get to a city.

What is it like for you to see it evolve?

It's very gratifying to see the project evolve, and to empower and witness other people in taking leadership. The touring crew to Chicago is a fabulous bunch of artists and cyclists: Orion Garcia, Dustin Wills, Jacob Wilson, Abrah Dresdale, Jeanette Olivas, Emily Jantzen, Simon Evans, Timothy Baron, and Michael Camacho. It's a gift to get to work with such dedicated people.

Tell us about your trip to Chicago...what exactly do you have planned there?

We arrive in Chicago on July 20, and the touring crew will spend the first week setting up the local factory. We are being presented by the Near North West Arts Council, who just bought out a beautiful old church in the Wicker Park neighborhood of Chicago that will serve as our factory headquarters.

The project will be open to the public July 25-August 15, and then we'll clean up and come home to Austin! In Chicago, we are also fortunate enough to get to collaborate with The Chicagoland Bicycle Federation, who is helping with publicity and promotion, as well as the Mayor's Office of Special Events. I think Chicago is going to be off the hook.