Wednesday, August 30, 2017
burning man 2017 art installations and architecture: a preview of this year's 'radical ritual'
www.designboom.com: right now, thousands of people-packed caravans are slowly making their way to nevada’s black rock desert to participate in burning man. the temporary metropolis, erected annually, draws colossal crowds of devoted ‘burners’ who come to experience spirituality, community, and art. guided by the ten principles — first documented by co-founder larry harvey in 2004 — participants build the city, and then burn it to the ground 9 days later. while the community aspect is at the core of this global cultural movement, a yearly ‘art theme’ has become an important part of the city, where creatives from across the globe take part in building monumental works across the arid landscape.
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4 comments:
I adore Burning Man, and the entire concept of a huge gathering of creatively minded people in one place to do radical art no one has seen before in general! Looking through these images of work, one that really popped out to me was Aqueous by Jen Lewin. I'm always drawn to color, so these meandering pathways of aquas and blues drew me in immediately. Not only are the colors incredibly contrastive to the reds and ochres of the desert around it and draw the attention to the literal idea of 'water in the desert', it ties into the theme of play in an incredibly unique way. Kids love water, splashing and playing and swimming in it. Pools and rivers can bring back strong memories and ideas of pay and freedom for people, and going to the beach or the lake is always for play. The interactive element adds to this, making you feel like a kid playing in puddles. And so what seems to be about water and the contrast of wet/dry or warm/cool suddenly becomes a deeper exploration of the Burning Man theme, and a place of reflection and calming in a radical and energetic world.
Burning Man is one of the most bizarre festivals I've ever heard of. I believe it could be extremely healthy to go to Burning Man, play and imagine and create without feeling self-conscious, surrounded by people doing the same things. However, I've heard things about Burning Man, where people indulge in hardcore drugs and crazy sexual activity. Some also believe that these things are healthy, but to the wrong person, these things can be deeply damaging. There's one side of Burning Man that is extremely intriguing to me, with all of its creation and self-exploration, but, like most festivals, there's a somewhat seamy underbelly of emotional illness, with people who may be easily taken advantage of and people who are preying on them.
I live in Manchester, TN. The hometown of Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival. Burning man is very similar to Bonnaroo in many ways, but in others, it could not be more different. I think it is lovely how dedicated the participants are to this festival, and absolutely remarkable that events like this continue to exist and thrive in our world that, in general, is so focused on business, money, and fame. Burning Man is a prime example of what it means to take part in the human condition and truly explore what the world has to offer.
I loved the incredible images of the massive sculptures and art installations at Burning Man-- this festival seems to stand out among other popular festivals as one with more emphasis on art and communal experience rather than drugs/alcohol/etc. as mentioned in the above comments, which I think is particularly necessary in this day and age more than ever. This year's theme of choice, "radical ritual", is a particularly interesting one given the current political circumstances in the United States and the charged atmosphere around religion. The purpose of the theme, however, states that it aims to disregard previous assumptions about beliefs and instead concentrate on the experience rather than the pre-concieved, which I thought was especially noteworthy.
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