<div><strong> Build H.E.X. — A Home for Dark Art, Sound, and Community</strong>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We found a space.
</div>
<div>Now we have to decide if H.E.X. becomes brick and mortar.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We are choosing to build it.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Who We Are</strong>
</div>
<div>“And pitch-black, in the darkness, we all looked the same.”
</div>
<div>— Pablo Neruda, Winter Encounter
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>H.E.X. Collective LLC is a fertile ground where the displaced, the divergent, and the alternative gather—a sanctuary, not a gate to be kept.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We are a non-religious, femme and queer-led collective.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>More than an organization—we are a refusal.
</div>
<div>A refusal of systems that edit, censor, and dictate creative expression—especially for artists working outside what is comfortable, marketable, or easily categorized.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>H.E.X. exists for artists, musicians, and creators who do not fit anywhere else.
</div>
<div>For those working in the dark, the strange, the irreverent, the anti-establishment—whose work is often overlooked not because it lacks value, but because it makes people uncomfortable.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Why H.E.X.</strong>
</div>
<div>We chose H.E.X. as both name and spell. Its roots are in Latin:
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Hortus — the garden, a place of cultivation and wild growth
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Est — “is,” the act of becoming (blooming..healing)
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Xenodochium — a refuge for strangers
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Together: The Garden Is a Refuge.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>This is not metaphor.
</div>
<div>This is the structure we are building.
</div>
<div>A place where art grows from exile. Naturally.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Why We’re Crowdfunding</strong>
</div>
<div>Right now, H.E.X. exists without a permanent home.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We’ve built something real through pop-ups, shared labor, and persistence—but that model is temporary. It limits what we can create, who we can reach, and how we can sustain ourselves.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We have now found a space.
</div>
<div>This is the turning point—where H.E.X. either becomes permanent, or remains something fleeting.
</div>
<div>We are choosing to build something that lasts.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>What This Space Will Be</strong>
</div>
<div>This is not a single-purpose venue.
</div>
<div>It is a working, evolving ecosystem.
</div>
<div>Art Studio — shared workspaces for artists across mediums
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Gallery — exhibitions that don’t get shown elsewhere
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Retail Front — a place for artists to sell their work directly through flat dues, not a high commission
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Music Venue — noise, post-punk, and experimental sound that has a hard time finding an audience
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Classes &amp; Skill Sharing — artist-led workshops and education
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Community Training — harm reduction, mutual aid, and real-world knowledge
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We will begin with weekend hours, growing sustainably as the space stabilizes.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Why This Matters</strong>
</div>
<div>Too often, spaces decide what is acceptable before artists even walk in.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Work that is too dark, too political, too strange, or too honest is filtered out before it has a chance to exist publicly.
</div>
<div>H.E.X. is built for that work.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>For the artists who have been misrepresented, overlooked, or pushed out of traditional spaces—not because of lack of skill, but because of discomfort.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>H.E.X. is committed to being a space that is safe and affirming for femme and marginalized people, and their allies—without compromising the raw, challenging nature of the work itself.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Where the Funds Go</strong>
</div>
<div>We believe in transparency. This is what you are helping us build:
</div>
<div>$18,000 — One full year of rent (stability from day one)
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>$3,000 — Basic buildout (lighting, fixtures, walls, signage)
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>$2,000 — Deposits, licensing, and startup costs
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>$2,000 — Operational cushion for the first months
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Total Goal: $25,000
</div>
<div>This is not excess.
</div>
<div>This is what it takes to open the doors—and keep them open.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Your Role</strong>
</div>
<div>This is not a donation.
</div>
<div>This is an act of creation.
</div>
<div>By supporting H.E.X., you are not funding a business—you are helping build a space that would not exist otherwise.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>A refuge.
</div>
<div>A structure.
</div>
<div>A living thing.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Closing</strong>
</div>
<div>Like a night garden, we do not fear the dark.
</div>
<div>We know what many spaces do not:
</div>
<div>Black is not the absence of color.
</div>
<div>It is the totality of it.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>And in the dark is where healing happens and creation begins.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Ways to Support H.E.X.</strong>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Every contribution helps build this space.
</div>
<div>For those who want a sense of how support may take shape, we’ve outlined a few ways people are choosing to contribute.
</div>
<div>•	Around $25 — Supporting the foundation of the space and being part of its beginning
</div>
<div>•	Around $50 — Helping bring materials and small physical elements of the space to life
</div>
<div>•	Around $100 — Supporting early programming, events, and community access
</div>
<div>•	Around $250 — Helping build out the space and sustain artist-led work
</div>
<div>•	Around $500+ — Supporting classes, equipment, and deeper community infrastructure
</div>
<div>•	Around $1,000+ — Helping secure the long-term foundation of H.E.X. and ensure its permanence
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>All contributions, at any level, directly support the creation of this space. You are the foundation.
</div>

Build H.E.X. — A Home for Dark Art, Sound, and Community

Still $4,340 to go. Help us build momentum.