I, Robot
Burning Man founder Larry Harvey passed away on April 28, 2018. Among Larry’s many roles, he famously chose and articulated the annual art themes for each gathering. Given Larry’s unique philosophical outlook, the theme announcements and their explanations speak to a poignant facet of the human-planetary condition. For 2018 Larry chose I, Robot. He wrote:
- A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
- A robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
- A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.
— Isaac Asimov, I, Robot
I, Robot, first published in 1950, is a collection of short science fiction stories by author Isaac Asimov. It is perhaps most famous for the three essential laws embedded deep in every robot’s positronic brain.
At first glance, these ethical precepts seem simple enough; they are really not much different from the Golden Rule. But a team of robot psychologists, engaged in what we would today call quality control, soon discover certain glitches that become quite sinister.
Asimov, like philosophers before him, naturally assumed that there could be no true morality without emotion. This battle between the qualitative and the quantitative, between human consciousness and abstract calculation, isn’t easily resolved, but one thing does seem certain: Nobody likes an angry robot.
This year’s art theme will focus on the many forms of artificial intelligence that permeate our lives, from the humble algorithm and its subroutines that sift us, sort us, and surveil us, to automated forms of labor that supplant us. Are we entering a Golden Age that frees us all from mindless labor? Everything, it seems, depends on HMI, the Human-Machine Interface. In a world increasingly controlled by smart machines, who will be master and who will be the slave?
Burning Man artists are a rare and extraordinary breed, willing to make art for the ephemeral sake of it. We endlessly admire and salute them. As more than 300 sculptures and installations appear on the playa in the week before Labor Day, be it known that the vast majority are independently funded and created. A smaller portion are modestly helped along by honoraria but need financial support. These installations come from teams all over the United States and the world, ranging from Copenhagen and Berlin to Dublin, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Jakarta, and Mumbai, to name just a few.
In our annual Common Ground preview, we narrow the scope to Northern California projects. Frankly, even in our limited geography, there is simply insufficient praise to go around. In a deep nod of gratitude we encourage readers to explore all of these precious art initiatives and volunteer support, financially or otherwise. We look forward to experiencing phenomenal art at Black Rock City.
“More human than human is our motto.”
—Dr. Tyrell, Blade Runner
Wizard of Oz: “As for you, my galvanized friend, you want a heart. You don’t know how lucky you are not to have one. Hearts will never be practical until they can be made unbreakable.”
Tin Woodsman: “But I still want one.”
Em-Pathos (EYE Robot)
by Michael Emery
Santa Cruz
A seven-foot-tall mural of 3D sculpted ceramic tile carved with a complex hieroglyphic message overlaying a wooden substructure, Em-Pathos will be a prehistoric, postapocalyptic communication enhancement device reminiscent of 2001 A Space Odyssey. Humans train robots to train humans to be more humane and better communicators with other humans and robots.
Camera Lucida
by Bill Evans
San Francisco • CameraLucida.com
Named after an 1800s invention used to project objects onto paper for drawing, Camera Lucida is a camera-like sculpture that enables twilight and night photos of people using warm light from a fire flash—rare detail that makes the viewer feel something and pushes the photo even further.
Crown Wave
by Charles Gadeken
San Francisco • CharlesGadeken.com
As part of a mission to create mass hypnosis, wonder, and delight, Crown Wave with its four 30-foot-tall prismatic towers will stand in a circle, bending and swaying inward and outward in a hypnotic dance. A shared experience on a gigantic scale with a riotous light show and interactive kinetic motion.
Cosmic Voyager
by Chromaforms
San Francisco • Chromaforms.net
Combining ancient symbolism from Hindu, Chinese, and indigenous American mythology into a reflective futuristic design to conjure visions of Spaceship Earth voyaging through the cosmos, Cosmic Voyager is a sea turtle made from polished stainless steel upon whose back lies a sprawling transparent city protected by a large transparent dome.
TBD
by Michael Christian
Berkeley • MichaelChristian.com
At 15 feet high and 18 feet wide, this massive Michael Christian lighted steel sculpture will have a branching brain-like appearance and stand on a root-like base that will hold 10-15 people inside its core. Each light pathway will be dependent on the pathway of others intersecting with it.
Spider Sweet
by Bryan Argabrite
Santa Cruz
Spider Sweet is a maneuverable 15-foot spider that draws in spectators (and their fears… of spiders) to explore her postures. With the intention of changing our perceptions of the misunderstood arachnid, we watch her come alive with color as the sun sets.
Stardust
by Stephanie Paige Tashner
Richmond • WeAreStardust.art
By night, playa travelers will be drawn to a glowing, low-lying mystery disc. As they venture closer they’ll see that the disc is actually a flying saucer – and a comfy bench! By day, the gentle sway of the Cosmic Rays and the soothing sound of the wind chimes quiet the mind.
Passage
by Dana Albany
San Francisco
A man of mechanical debris and steel sweeps his hand through stalks of wheat (symbolizing abundance, life, and fertility). Is this a man? Or part robot? What is the fine blurry line between each? Burners can look at the inherent beauty of the human form, contemplate mechanics and technology, and be reminded of our absolute reliance on nature in the end.
Sisyphus: Technology
Through the Ages
by Sisyphus Collective
Alameda
Consisting of four 200- to 400-pound spheres that represent technology through the ages, these balls are designed to be rolled by the citizens of BRC to the home base tower. Like the Greek Sisyphus, we struggle. Our actions are sometimes laborious and futile. In modern times we struggle with technology—to keep up, to be human, to work together, to communicate.
Let U.S. Prey
by Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson
Alameda • Mr-and-Mrs-Ferguson.com
With a curved wingspread of 16 feet, this toscale bald eagle took more than 150,000 coins (pennies, nickels, and dimes) to create. The beak will be made from formed brass and the eyes from blown glass.
Paraluna
by Christopher Schardt
Oakland, CA – Ledlabs.co
Paraluna combines kinetic sculpture, LEDs, and music. Its main component is a disc 10m in diameter with 17,280 LEDs. A computer controls the LEDs while rotating, raising, lowering, and tilting the disc, which is surrounded by high-quality speakers playing immersive classical music in keeping with the movement patterns.
QuadruPOD
by Scott Parenteau
Sacramento, CA
A pod with four legs and plenty of gears walking around the playa during the daylight hours creates an art piece that actually looks for you. Designed to operate robotically as well as be controlled by an operator.
Hexatron
by Mark Lottor
Menlo Park
Imagine a hexagonal forest, 90 feet in diameter, with 486 20-foot tall LED light poles displaying 3D computer-controlled effects.
RadiaLumia
by FoldHaus
Oakland, CA • Foldhaus.com
A five-story-high geodesic sphere covered with a breathing skin of origami shells and radiant spikes, RadiaLumia parallels a tiny protozoa with an intricate mineral skeleton that once covered the desert thousands of years ago when it was a sea floor. The shells open and close in response to visitors’ presence, sometimes protecting the intimate interior of the sphere, sometimes revealing a glimpse of its heart.
Re-Cyclone
by Chromaforms
San Francisco • Chromaforms.net
Made from hundreds of plastic bottles carefully assembled into a rotating tornado, the installation towers in the air as a slowly undulating pillar of light. Re-Cyclone is a captivating statement about the power of creativity to turn waste into beauty.
Rossum’s Original Band
of Tubas—R.O.B.O.T.
by Roger Carr
Berkeley, CA
Like a large steel spider that moves under remote control, Rossum’s Original Band of Tubas (R.O.B.O.T) is a mechanical musical robot common before the electronic era. Playing music by both a keyboard interface and smartphone-engineered jukebox selections, Burners will be invited to record songs that can be added as selections.
Ring Theory
by John Pertsch
Hillsborough, CA
Evoking the chaotic motions that underlie our physical reality, Ring Theory is a circular congregation of simple hypnotic mobiles creating an ethereal vision not soon forgotten.
Scriptorium
by Majorelle Arts
Oakland, CA • GrayDavidson.com
A 20-foot-long mythological writing teacher in steel holding both a stylus and a lantern, Scriptorium is a chimera of mammalian and reptilian parts. As a sail moves on its back, the balanced creature responds to the wind, creating a drawing like a spirograph in the loose desert surface dust.
Worm Watch
by South Bay Burners Art Collective
San Jose, CA
A solitary tower stands lookout for sandworms in the desert. One sandworm encircles the tower, poised to attack.
Trace
by Kathryn Greenberg
San Francisco
Inspired by the interconnectivity and ephemerality of the playa, Trace is an installation of colored rope that weaves into a mirage-esque form above the dust. This art piece reflects on the way Black Rock City teases our perception of reality as we generate and explore it together, like a shared dream.