The Hove Civic Society participated in the matched crowdfunding pilot to raise money to fund the sculpture Constellation - the first sculpture on Hove’s new seafront plinth. We spoke to Karin, the Project Director, about how the campaign went and the progress since. The discussion raised interesting points around success breeding more success, the pressure associated with matched crowdfunding, and a warning that the crowdfunding space is potentially becoming too crowded. We also talked to Stephanie Brada, a key donor to the Constellation crowdfunding campaign.

Karin described the project as an idea to “bring more public sculptures to Brighton & Hove, and in particular to Hove”, which eventually developed into the Hove Plinth project that would exhibit different sculptures over time. Constellation was selected as the first sculpture by a public vote and, according to Karin, “it very much resonated with our idea of connecting with the local area, because the sculpture really celebrates past and present of Hove.” The sculpture was erected about 9 months after the crowdfunding campaign ended, and will remain for a total of 18 months. Karin referred to the launch as “a fantastic success”, with the big reveal of the sculpture accompanied by music and speeches attended by hundreds of people.

Notably, the success of the campaign has bred more success, with the increased visibility of the project attracting the University of Brighton and the University of Sussex, to approach Karin in relation to a research project named Placed-based narratives. The Computer Science departments of these institutions “have a programme of research around using digital technologies for engaging people in arts and heritage [...] and they are using the Hove plinth as a case study for that.” It will hopefully provide a platform for a larger, national research project.

Karin discussed the positive pressure accompanying the matched funding element: “To be able to say to people, ‘if we can reach our target, the big fund we needed to raise, then we will get the matched funding that will allow us to start the project’ [...] I mean, that was a very good selling point.” She went on to tell us that at an event during the campaign, a simple explanation of how the matched funding worked cleared up some confusion amongst backers, who then went on to put more money in towards the project.

In terms of going forward and considering crowdfunding again in the future, Karin commented: “I’ve noticed in the last year that, particularly here in Brighton, it sort of feels that crowdfunding is used for everything now”. Exploring this further, she talked about there seeming to be so many campaigns around and the frustration at larger organisations also using it as an alternative way to raise funds. As Karin mentioned, “people can only support so many things” and because the larger groups have more resources to attract the public with marketing budgets, the smaller organisations such as the Hove Civic Society can be disadvantaged. This is potentially a major challenge for crowdfunding platforms, policy makers and those wishing to undertake a campaign in the future.

Donor engagement

The longer term impacts of crowdfunding were not only felt by those running the campaign, but also by the backers, such as Stephanie Brada, a key donor to Constellation.

With regards to interest in the project, Stephanie talked about her and her husband’s fondness for public art and their proximity to the project: “We live on the seafront in Hove, so actually the plinth is in eye shot of our flat, so that of course was very exciting for us.” Having been invited along to the launch event, Stephanie also discussed how the Hove Civic Society has continued to invite her to events, which coupled with regular updates on the project, has kept her feeling involved. The relationship has continued to be mutually beneficial, as Stephanie was able to put Karin in touch with their neighbours during a period of open public consultation, who provided insights into the public perception of the project.

Stephanie was positive on the concept of crowdfunding more broadly. As well as commenting on how easily she was able to donate money, she pointed to the advantages of how doing so “enables you to feel like you can be a small part of something that you couldn’t possibly afford to be patron of, but you can be a part of it.” From the donor’s perspective, crowdfunding goes beyond simply giving money.

To find out more about Constellation, and the Hove Plinth more specifically, please visit their website.