MASSIVE POWER DOWN ART INSTALLATION IDEA....

Uncle Fishbits · Post by **Uncle Fishbits** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 7:36 pm

I know the poll is grammatically challenged. Sorry bout that.

THE UPDATE: is that this is going through the proper channels... thanks for all of your enthusiasm and support. TALK IT UP... there is no reason this couldn't happen... but the more we talk it up, the better off we are!!!
===============================================COO

I have had this idea for a number of years... and would love some help
realizing it. With the advent of the Green Theme, I think it might be
time to put this together.

http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... 485#274485

the forum seems to be down, but it is of no concern... I will retell
exactly what I was thinking...

In response to the eco theme, I wanted to help create and foster a
moment of respect.. so to speak... to foster the community's
understanding that we are in a different world at burning man, but
need to come back to earth for a moment to show respect and love for
the planet. So if we can reconnect with the planet... at once, and
completely together... we can remember why we are at the burn, and
celebrating life in the first place.

Therefore... to help solidfy the connection of people together, as
well as with the earth... I suggest a massive and total power down at
about 11:00pm or midnight on thursday or friday... for about 5
minutes... so everyone can feel together, and bond and look up at the
clearest, darkest and most beautiful sky we have ever had the chance
to stand under... (and the only one we have had the chance to stand
under). SO.. everyone becomes an equal participant in the most all
encompassing moment at burning man... for us to come back to earth...
reconnect... and look up at the sky.. simply to realize what and who
we are.

Resultingly... everyone becomes a participant, having to work together
to turn off all the lights at the same time. Therefore you have the
largest art installation *EVER*... everyone participating, everyone
coming together at the same moment.... turning art into something that
creates community, bonds people, brings them out of their world (their
tent camp, their sonic stage... all of a suddent every boundary drops
and we are united under a veil of stars), and everyone into each
other's.....

*THIS* world.

I like the idea. And it is much less damaging than the idea of
setting off an EMP, which I mused with for about 10 seconds. Beyond
not knowing how to build or operate one, I am sure all the electronic
damage would be lame lame lame, and that is very unburn of me to be
lame. =)

Contact me at your leisure. I have sent this out to a couple other
friends as well.

helitack · Post by **helitack** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 8:11 pm

Really? Is silence and darkness art?

Uncle Fishbits · Post by **Uncle Fishbits** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 8:37 pm

[quote="helitack"]Really? Is silence and darkness art?[/quote]

I cannot tell if that is snide, sarcastic, or serious....

BUT SIR I LIKE IT. I mean your response.

Anyhoo... I figure art just elicits response in many senses... you may not like such a simple definition.. but art rouses emotion.

And sure, by that lame-ass incoherent and arbitrary definition.. sure you could debunk it. Or not. Whatever... just a thought.

I figure getting BRC to shut up for a few moments, and enjoy the pretty stars, and then start howling like mad dogs... well to hear 40K do that? I assume it would give me some groovy shivers like some art I have seen. I won't be so assumptive to suggest that is art...

"ART" is defined by the observer. I personally think... by juxtaposing the idea of the earth, the stars, the desert, everything... over our little mad as hell mothership... well, if I believed in reality based irony I would say that would be it.

We go to the desert to escape our reality.... to create our own. But as we leave this planet in creating our own, we totally forget that we are still part of the system... still part of the moment and the web and the structure and the function of it all...

no matter how you build it, you cannot escape reality. So just to come back to Earth.. and celebrate how special what we build can exist somewhere so complex..... I think that is art.

And if you really do get DisneyBurn to shut down for a second...

Well it has to be art. Has anyone seen all of BRC empty when everyone is there?

Okay... no more drinking and posting. Cheers!

Or like stuff here... is this stuff art?
http://www.vvork.com

uh oh... what is art?

Shit people, that is a can of worms.

Kinetic IV · Post by **Kinetic IV** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 9:35 pm

Interesting idea. However with people running on playa time and at that time of night many people are already in an altered state of consciousness....factor in the sheer logistical nightmare of getting 40,000 people to do the same thing in a very narrow window of time...

What's that old saying, if it's not difficult, outlandish, expensive, or impractical it's not a good playa project? This one fits.

I'd like to see it happen but I doubt short of a mandate from Larry himself that it has a snowball's chance in hell. But it's worth a shot.

Uncle Fishbits · Post by **Uncle Fishbits** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 10:08 pm

[quote="Kinetic IV"]I'd like to see it happen but I doubt short of a mandate from Larry himself that it has a snowball's chance in hell. But it's worth a shot.[/quote]

The fact is, you are right. I am in the middle of having the infrastructure run about by all the big people.... and it seems everyone is a fan. BUT... regardless if Larry wanted it, it needs to be advertised now.... and constantly. I have some infrastructure ideas and concepts to deal with it... but it needs a hell of a lot of support. The idea is that this would be a simple, constant, yearly thing that would be part of the program for now on.

Or... not my idea, but a friends' idea... who suggests that this needs to be part of the program forever. Period.

I think I agree. Don't know. If they say no way, then no... no I never agreed to begin with. =)

Uncle Fishbits · Post by **Uncle Fishbits** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 12:47 am

http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... 822#301822

let's talk about it here.... good or bad, happy or sad... rip the idea apart or not.

I just want dialogue.

Turn lights and music down for a couple minutes for the eclipse... YAY OR NAY?!?!

pinemom · Post by **pinemom** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 6:13 am

the whole green theme, on saving power is to have everyone use solor during the day instead of generators at night! store and use the power you got from the sun....so you are green!

LeChatNoir · Post by **LeChatNoir** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 10:12 am

There seems to be a lot of knee-jerk reactions to the â€œgreenâ€

thisisthatwhichis · Post by **thisisthatwhichis** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 2:18 pm

I say put it in the "list of events for 2007", and then promote the hell out of it.
Not everyone will join in, but how knows, you might get more participation than you dreamed, especially if you have a "big crowd draw" pre-event........Don't set your expectations, just, enjoy it.
Word of mouth travels pretty fast on the playa, so spreading the word, in key places, for days before the event would also help........

There ya go... take ownership, and fly..... it's yours for the taking....

wedeliver · Post by **wedeliver** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 4:14 pm

If we turned off and covered all of our lights at the point of total eclipse the Playa will become black. Other then the stars in the sky you would see nothing. Your hand would not be visible in front of your face. Complete and total blackness. WOW

LeChatNoir · Post by **LeChatNoir** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 7:07 pm

thisisthatwhichis wrote:I say put it in the "list of events for 2007", and then promote the hell out of it.
Not everyone will join in, but how knows, you might get more participation than you dreamed, especially if you have a "big crowd draw" pre-event........Don't set your expectations, just, enjoy it.
Word of mouth travels pretty fast on the playa, so spreading the word, in key places, for days before the event would also help........

There ya go... take ownership, and fly..... it's yours for the taking....

Yeah!! Yeah!!! What TITWI said...

I hope you got that sentiment through all that going on and on in my last post. I don't have that tagline for nothing, you know.

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 10:49 pm

I was just thinking, if this went down on Thursday/Friday midnight, that's when they stop sales at the gate. Imagine the "Whot daaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh FFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH â€”"

effect that the people coming in the gate would be experiencing right at that moment.
They drove however many hundreds of miles to get there, they can see the lights of the city, then the city goes dark and quiet â€” it would be PRICELESS. Course the gate and Greeter people would be clued in, but the people in line would be gobsmacked...
And this is the line where Art and Tricksterism is, and it would be very much crossed

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 5:54 am

wedeliver wrote:If we turned off and covered all of our lights at the point of total eclipse the Playa will become black. Other then the stars in the sky you would see nothing. Your hand would not be visible in front of your face. Complete and total blackness. WOW

I agree that coordinating a power-down with the height of the lunar eclipse might be cool. But don't expect the whole city to comply. (If someone had an old Civil Defence siren, they could use it to signal the event. We can't expect everyone to be monitoring BMIR.)

You'd be surprised how little light you need to see your hand in front of your face, especially out on the playa where there's so little ambient light pollution. Even if it were overcast that night, your eyes would adjust in under a half hour even if you were just emerging from a brightly-lit camp. The only times I've been COMPLETELY unable to see have been during whiteouts. One of my very favorite things to do is walk out to a dark, remote spot on the middle playa (between The Man and where "Midnight" would be on the Playa Clock) and behold first the city from horizon to horizon and then the celstial glory overhead.

PurpleKoosh · Post by **PurpleKoosh** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 1:04 pm

robotland wrote:One of my very favorite things to do is walk out to a dark, remote spot on the middle playa (between The Man and where "Midnight" would be on the Playa Clock) and behold first the city from horizon to horizon and then the celstial glory overhead.

I did this a couple of years ago...rode all the way out to the trash fence with Captain Goddamnit on the Playa Cruiser, powered everything down, and just hung out looking back at the city. It was amazing.

Until the sherriffs drove up to see what nefarious purpose we were out there for with no lights on.

BAS · Post by **BAS** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 2:43 pm

Sounds cool. Wish I'd done that. Maybe another time....

B.

Barbie · Post by **Barbie** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:02 pm

Oh YES one of my Favorite things to do also--Be careful of Art Cars and Vampires

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 8:41 pm

Awwww Barbie....You're in one of my FAVORITE spot on th' whole planet. We got shave ice, as any Good Tourist would...but we also stood on amazing centuries-old glyphs and worshipped The Pipe.....Whoaaaaa!

Finnegan · Post by **Finnegan** » Sun Mar 18, 2007 10:42 am

I love the idea of a city-wide blackout during the eclipse. I think it's unlikely to happen, but it would be great!

I go hang out in the deep dark at least a few times during the week, and it's always incredible. To have the whole city go dark would be amazing. Good luck!

MASSIVE POWER DOWN ART INSTALLATION IDEA....

Is this stupid, or is this a good idea for a the coolest art installation ever?

MASSIVE POWER DOWN ART INSTALLATION IDEA....

OH GOD NO... what is art?

this is where to go I guess... let's keep it consistent!