Burning Man: the best sculptures, star guests and Ukraine
The Burning Man festival of modern art and free creativity has ended in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada. It became the first after the pandemic, because no events were held in 2020 and 2021.
This time, more than 80,000 guests came to see unusual installations and high-tech art objects. The theme of the festival this time was Waking Dreams.
The best Burning Man sculptures
Paradisium
The Paradisium installation, created by San Francisco artists Dave Keen and the group Folly Builders, is an artificial grove of fantasy trees made from recycled lumber and the remains of real trees burned in a fire.
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The Last Ocean
“The Last Ocean” is an installation by New York artist Jen Levin. During the creation of the art project, she used the author’s LED technology. 300 platforms made of recycled plastic light up when interacting with people – you can freely move around the installation.
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Silver statues
The author of this giant sculpture of a couple is not specified, but according to eyewitnesses, it was against its background that couples were most often photographed – for the photo, they copied the poses in which the statues stand.
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Gaia
One of the most talked about sculptures at Burning Man this year, Gaia was created by Californian Marco Cochrane in collaboration with Julia Cornell. At 40 feet (just over 12 m), Gaia is made of metal and symbolizes maternal energy and the unity of humanity.
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Star guests
Cindy Crawford and Kaia Gerber
56-year-old supermodel Cindy Crawford went with her daughter Kaia Gerber on her birthday to Burning Man. Cindy posted photos from the festival on her Instagram.
“How are you already 21?! I am so proud of the woman you have become and who you have become in this world. Your curiosity, kindness, and thirst for adventure continue to inspire me.” – Cindy Crawford.
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Paris Hilton
Paris Hilton has long been a regular at the festival. This year, she played with the image of Barbie again with pink braids.
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Katri Kats and Juhani Siarglep
Estonian bloggers Katri Kats and Juhani Siarglep also attended this year’s festival. They had been there before and enjoyed the heat of the desert at the Burning Man festival.
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A singer was also seen among the guests Katy Perry, Google billionaires Larry Page and Sergey Brin, supermodel Heidi Klum, actress Cara Delevingne, Elon Musk from Tesla Motors, MTV creator Bob Pittman, Italian fashion designer Francesca Versace, head of Rothschild & Co. David de Rothschild, Australian sportswear designer Pip Edwards and others.
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Ukraine
The Lithuanian-American camp Amber Dust created a five-meter installation “Trident of Freedom” at the festival Burning Man-2022 to demonstrate to the world support of Ukraine in the war with the Russian Federation.
“We chose the coat of arms of Ukraine, which is believed to have originated as an ancestral symbol, a synthesis of the divine elements of fire and water in the manifested world. Three points, three worlds and trinities are always present in human mythology and culture. Today, the trident is a symbol of unity and freedom. A symbol of perseverance and determination, a symbol of the struggle for freedom and democracy. The wisdom embedded in the trident is universal,” – explain artists
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In addition, Ukrainian and participant of the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 Alina Pash sang on one of the Burning Man stages. At a festival in the USA, she read a prayer for those who died in the war in Ukraine.
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Blogger and winner of the first “Bachelor” show Oleksandr Shulgin visited Burning Man. She shared a photo-video report from the festival on Instagram:
“Burning Man is a place where you get to know yourself. A very interesting experience and probably the most difficult journey of mine.”
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Interesting Facts
Burning Man is perhaps the only place on earth that has managed to abstract itself from commerce and material goods. On Playa, money is nothing more than paper. You cannot buy food, water, clothes or other goods here. But you can exchange something of your own for something interesting.
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The basics of Burning Man. Every participant of the festival must follow the 10 commandments of Burning Man, namely:
- General involvement
- Gift
- Lack of commercial start
- Radical self-belief
- Radical self-expression
- Joint work
- Civil responsibility
- Leave no trace
- Participation
- Spontaneity
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Participants rely only on themselves. They are responsible for their own livelihood – food, water, places to sleep, protection from heat, wind, cold, etc.
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At Burning Man, you can find some pretty shocking locations and activities that go beyond what would be “decency” under any other circumstances. For example, there are camps on the territory specializing in various erotic entertainment.
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The desert is an ideal vantage point for observing celestial bodies. In 2014, Desert Wizards of Mars launched an observatory at Burning Man that includes two 21-foot domes and a 20-inch telescope.
Photo: Pexel
