Temple Build in Northern Ireland
In collaboration with the UK-based Artichoke Trust, Burning Man is providing grant support to bring an ambitious community art project to Derry-Londonderry, Northern Ireland. David Best, creator of the Temple of Grace at Burning Man 2014, will be building a temple with the local community that will turn the notion of bonfires and burning in Northern Ireland upside-down. In Derry, a city historically split by religious and political divisions, there is a long-standing tradition of burning and building extreme bonfires. This temple will instead serve as a source of healing, uniting people as they come together for the build. Four people from Derry traveled to Burning Man this year and studied with David as he worked on the Temple of Grace, in preparation for the build phase of this project.
This is Burning Man’s first grant under the newly reorganized Burning Man Arts program, and its first collaboration with Artichoke, which specializes in large-scale, interactive public art installations in the United Kingdom. Burning Man Arts has also awarded a grant to support documentary filmmaker Laurent LeGall, who is working on a full-length film about David Best’s life and work. He will shoot the temple project in Northern Ireland for the film, which is expected to be released sometime in 2015.
Here’s their Kickstarter video: