The Red Tent

Role: concept

The Red Tent is a mobile communal menstrual supplies waystation, serving as a place for sharing humanity through shared needs and abundance. Menstruation remains a taboo discussion topic, despite being responsible for all of human existence, resulting not only in failing to provide for the basic needs of the half of the human population it affects, but in some cases, shunning this population as well. In this day and age of advanced technology, where modern menstrual hygiene products are plentiful and highly-affective, most countries continue to charge a sales or value-added tax on these necessary items. Wouldn't it be great if menstrual hygiene were part of the fabric of public infrastructure? (Along with public libraries, public parks, public transportation, and public education, just to name a few)

Many iterations have passed since this project began at the cultural experiment known as Burning Man 2015, first as a box behind the bar and a listing in a directory, progressing to a freestanding 8' tent with an integrated table, stocked with high-quality pads, tampons, and NSAIDs. As I have transitioned to more and smaller cultural camping events throughout the year and away from Burning Man, I sought a version of the project that was smaller and more nimble for storage, transport, and deployment, eventually choosing a collapsible pet tent as the the main structure. The current version of the project fits in a single tote bag, and stores the tent, a box of spare supplies, lighting, mounting hardware, and a tablecloth.