Make an Artist a Millionaire Phase 3

A multi-phase project designed to allow me to practice art full time, and to contribute to a discussion about the financialization of art. Donate by sending money to thedannelson[at]protonmail.com at Paypal.com or to @thedannelson at Venmo.

This phase entailed writing a letter to each of the people on the Forbes 400 list (i.e. the wealthiest individuals in the US) and asking them to donate to MAAAM. Rather than sending a form letter, I researched each recipient and crafted a personalized plea. This phase became more about sussing out human nature and how to get through to the kind of person who, on the surface, couldn’t be more different from the average artist: the business person. The same challenge of seeking patronage rather than an exchange that exists on the lower end of the scale of quantity–$1–was amplified many times in approaching millionaires and billionaires. As in many of my projects, I was taking on the impossible, with the odds stacked against me.