The Afterlife

In 2001, the artists' group Radiant Atmospheres designed and built our second art installation for Burning Man. Following the theme "Seven Ages," we expanded on it by considering that wakeful state beyond the physical, The Afterlife (Fig. 16).

Imagine a world between worlds: part grandmother's attic, part Fellini film. As participants approached the piece, windows surreally hung in mid-air cast distorted shadows. Passing through the Gateway to The Afterlife, participants encountered a variety of flickering and changing images. Billowing shadows were cast over a large altar holding eerily intriguing corporeal visions. Once inside this cycle of life, participants found the source of the beacons that had lured them, following a dark direct path through the Great Beyond past the Mausoleum. A tunnel of light created columns of changing color, cast infinitely toward the heavens; tattered fabric blew in the breeze as the columns moved toward the light, discovering at the very center a place of repose, affording viewers a chance to gaze into the rewards of infinite light and life. The overall feeling was of peace within strangely familiar territory— a removed sense of déjà vu, a welcoming home.

With light as its primary medium, The Afterlife utilized over 40,000 watts of lighting power. The main octagonal structure, approximately 10 ft high and 30 ft across, consisted of 2-in steel pipe, while the 15-ft-high center tower was built of aluminum truss. Large, distorted steel window frames hung from the octagon, strung with ragged, translucent fabric, casting surreal shadows across the playa. A large mobile made of old wooden casement windows and optical lenses hung within the central tower, twisting in the desert winds. Over 60 lighting fixtures, including spotlights, wash lights, pattern and effects projectors, slide projectors, strobes, intelligent lights and color changers, combined to create a stunning immersive environment. This ever-changing array of beams and special effects exploded into the sky across hundreds of feet of desert floor and onto and through the canvas of howling dust rushing above the installation.

All lighting was controlled via a computer running DMX sequencing software and powered by an 80 kW generator. Soaring, sometimes eerie, music and spoken word enveloped participants through a soundtrack that was by turns subtle and emotive. The large altar at the rear of the installation held objects that were both familiar and uncanny; memory and dreamscape merged. Here participants made offerings of every kind, stood silently, sat conversing with friends on long hardwood benches or reclined on simple wooden loungers. As the offerings on the altar multiplied and the dust of the playa nestled and swirled between them, the altar continued to evolve, reflecting the diverse hopes and humors of the Burning Man community. In this way, the piece truly became the community's own handiwork, taking on an evolutionary personality both ephemeral and playful—truly reflective of Burning Man.

Radiant Atmospheres is dedicated to creating and perfecting the use of elemental art and organic lighting effects. Composed of a group of individually skilled artists and technicians, Radiant Atmospheres blurs the lines between art and science with the goal of creating enhanced environments, giving participants the chance to appreciate their surroundings while melding with them.

Fig. 16.

Radiant Atmospheres, The Afterlife, light sculpture utilizing steel, aluminum, fabric, wood, glass, optical lenses, light fixtures, slide projectors, color changers, computer software, generator, old toys, garden stoneware and other reclaimed urban debris, 2001.

(© Radiant Atmospheres. Photo © Jon Ross.)