From ornate temples to colorful mushrooms to larger-than-life animal sculptures, the giant art installations of Burning Man are a hallmark of the free-spirited desert festival. From Black Rock Desert, Nevada, many of these memorable artworks can all be seen in one place at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington D.C. starting March 30.
Taking over the museum's Renwick Gallery, the “No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man” exhibition will showcase immersive room-sized installations, costumes, jewelry, and other ephemera from the festival. Nora Atkinson (SAAM Lloyd Herman Curator of Craft) and the Burning Man Project (the non-profit who produces the festival) organized the exhibition with feedback from the Burning Man community, who played a major role in selecting the pieces for the exhibition.
Artists in the exhibition include: David Best, Candy Chang, Marco Cochrane, Duane Flatmo, Michael Garlington and Natalia Bertotti, Five Ton Crane Arts Collective, FoldHaus Art Collective, Scott Froschauer, HYBYCOZO (Yelena Filipchuk and Serge Beaulieu), Android Jones, Aaron Taylor Kuffner, Christopher Schardt, Richard Wilks, and Leo Villareal.
Throughout nearby neighborhoods surrounding the SAAM, multiple installation sites were selected for works by Jack Champion, Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson, HYBYCOZO, Laura Kimpton, Mischell Riley, and Kate Raudenbush.
Scroll down to see some of the Burning Man installations over the years.
“‘No Spectators’ is a long-standing saying on Playa. You are encouraged to fully participate,” says Nora Atkinson. “It’s all about being there, being fully present, and not just observing. Two of the ten principles of Burning Man are radical participation and radial inclusivity, meaning that there are no outsiders. Everyone is part of the experience.”
Tickets to the opening party on March 29 are already sold out, but the museum will host a series of related events coming up, including walking tours of the exhibition, artist and gallery talks, and an open house from noon to 2 p.m on March 30.
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3 Comments
A sad day for the utopian counterculture of Burning Man. The mainstream elites kill the spirit of the event while only showing the artifacts out of context.
It reminds me of blockbuster Hollywood movies where you always see clothing scattered around a room to signify that there must have been some sex.
The commodification and recuperation of the art shows that Burning Man is dying. When you put something into a museum it's in most cases history already.
You can by now buy "Burning Man masks" at Amazon for 5$ each. It happened to the hippies, punks, rappers - it happens again.
"Burning Man" has been monetized completely several years ago. You go there and 'pay money' to be 'free'. What a crock. Go spend a day hiking in a national park or walking along a beach with your family.
I am working with Harvard Business School for their 100th anniversary book and Jennifer Raiser is an alumni and she is featured in the book.
We are hoping to use an image in the book: Burning Man participants, 2013. Photo by Neil Girling. I am hoping I can email him or him me. My email is: vshea@swpublishinggroup.com
I am the senior art director designing the book.
Thank you