EyeWriter needs your help!
One year ago, graffiti artist Tony Quan (aka TEMPT1) teamed up with a group of artists from the Graffiti Research Lab, OpenFrameworks and Free Art and Technology communities to develop free and open source eye tracking and drawing software that has helped him make art again for the first time since being hospitalized. In 2003, TEMPT1 was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s Disease), a degenerative neuromuscular disorder that causes paralysis and ultimately death. Over the course of 5 years, he lost the ability to move his arms and legs, speak, eat and even breathe without life-support systems. Not only is he drawing again, but he’s creating new and complex letter forms, designing font libraries and evolving a brand new style using new and old technology in ways no one could have imagined. After seven years of paralysis, Tony has again become a pioneer in a new community of creative individuals who refuse to let neuromuscular diseases stop them from expressing themselves through art.
The team has just launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise the money Tony needs to create a new collection of original TEMPT1 artwork and merchandise using the EyeWriter 2.0 software, robotic technology, traditional print-making techniques, as well as his community of friends, fans and peers.
Supporting this campaign will not only allow TEMPT1 to continue to make art and express his ideas, but it will give him a chance to again become a professional artist, independently support himself and his family, pay for his medical bills, and make a contribution to the contemporary art world.
Please, take a moment today and donate as little as $1 (everything counts!) in support of EyeWriter >
Kickstarter Page
100% of the $15,000 goal will go directly to TEMPT1 to help produce his art, cover his hospital costs and help support his family. Anything above that amount will be split 50/50 between TEMPT1 and research and development costs for future versions and improvements of the EyeWriter system.
For updates, please follow @eyewriter on Twitter.
For more information on the EyeWriter initiative, please go to:http://eyewriter.org
For more background on TEMPT1, please go to:http://estria.blogspot.com/2009/10/tempt-one-creates-art-with-only-his.html
For examples of Tempt’s drawings, check out the following: here | here | here
