Stichting Otterdam is a Dutch nonprofit that enables anthropomorphic (“furry”) arts and culture through productions, collaborations, resources, and information.
Quick links to:
Collaborations
Stichting Otterdam seeks out places where a furry presence enriches an experience, along with experiences that enrich furries. That’s #2 of [LINK TO ANCHOR ON WHO WE ARE PAGE]our principles[/LINK]. So we’re always seeking partners for interesting collaborations – especially those outside of the established furry community. We have resources to help you bring furriness into your organisation, venue, event, art, or life.
Enable “fursuiters” (costumers) to attend your event.
Any place with dancing is improved by fursuiters! But they have special needs to stay safe and protect their valuable costumes. We can help you set up a “Headless Lounge” changing area and implement fursuiter-friendly policies.
Use furry arts to help open communication.
Anthropomorphic art and storytelling has appeared in every culture – furry is universal! And it can be effective in clinical, social, and group settings, such as when a furry convention spontaneously entertained Syrian refugees. We’ll help you explore the possibilities and find appropriate teachers, facilitators, and artists.
Enrich your curriculum with furry arts and culture.
Young and old alike enjoy furry-themed educational activities. Fursona-creation classes strengthen storytelling skills; tail-making workshops develop craft abilities; and so on. We’ll help you design and implement a program that fits your curriculum.
Feature furry arts in performances and exhibitions.
Dancers, musicians, visual artists, writers, and of course fursuit creators and performers all find inspiration through furry arts. Whether you’re thinking of a furry-themed gallery exhibit, a music video, a concert performance, or anything else, we’ll help find the people and resources to make it happen.
Terms
For Stichting Otterdam to be involved, your initiative must:
- Be open and accessible to all people age 13 and up (with “ban list” exceptions).
- Provide free and unlimited access to tap water and toilets.
- Have policies and enforcement measures to prevent unwanted touching and other harassment.
Additional requirement if costuming is a part of the initiative:
- Have an furnished, attended, private, limited-access, well-sized changing and storage area (“Headless Lounge”). We can provide specific guidelines and resources for such a space.
Note: Stichting Otterdam does not represent individual artists or other service providers; we only help you evaluate and connect with them.
Resources
Tools to create and improve furry space
Currently available
- Online ticketing system (with at-event scanning)
- Referral service to furry artists and personalities
- Business consulting to create and run a healthy furry organisation
Planned
- “Headless Lounge” furnishings: tables, chairs, water containers, room dividers, and fursuit dryers.
- Promotional services to reach both furry and nonfurry outlets
What is “furry”?
“Furries” are fans of anthropomorphic art – that is, art with characters who have traits of both humans and other animals. Over the past 40 or 50 years, these fans have banded together into a community much like fans of a TV show, music group, or sports team.
But furries have one big difference: Furries are fans of work they themselves create, not of cultural products that others created. Most furries have at least one “fursona” – a depiction of themselves as a different form, such as an (anthropomorphic) wolf or dragon. A fursona can show how you see yourself, or what you aspire to be, or what you want to see in others.
The “furry fandom” is large and growing. They gather online, at local meetups, and at (inter)-national “conventions”, the biggest of which host over 15,000 people over a long weekend. These events feature art marketplaces, dance competitions, classes, and lots of opportunities to socialise.
But you don’t need to attend a convention or create a fursona to appreciate the unique way “furries” allow new art forms to develop or new stories to be told. As Stichting Otterdam’s [LINK TO “OUR PRINCIPLES” SECTION OF “Who we are” PAGE]principles[/LINK]:
Furry is social, psychological, and spiritual. It’s entertainment and participation. It’s a platform for creative expression; but it’s also walking down the street or sitting in a room. It’s seeing yourself and others in an interesting way. Stichting Otterdam celebrates all of these.
Further Info
- For parents and family members of furries: “Moms of Furries”
- For academics:
- Furscience (social researchers focusing on the furry fandom)
- Furry Studies conference
- “The Fandom”, a documentary about the furry fandom’s history
- Wikifur, an open-access knowledge database on furry topics