FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 8, 2011
Contact: Darcy Minter, 775.340.4240
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Folklife Center Exhibition Showcases
Costumes from Burning Man Art Festival
Exhibition at Wiegand Gallery March 30 through May 20
Elko, Nevada—For the past 20 years, during the week prior to Labor Day, Nevada's Black Rock Desert is transformed into the celebrated Burning Man Art Festival and its temporary community. The Western Folklife Center presents an exhibition of 14 life-sized photographs and three mannequins documenting day and nighttime Burning Man costumes. For the past five years, Geoffrey Nelson has set out to document the most creative and unusual of these costumes that he encounters during the festival. A Tribe of Artists: Costumes and Culture at Burning Man is on display from March 30 through May 20, 2011, in the Western Folklife Center's Wiegand Gallery.
Drawing over 50,000 participants from around the world, the Burning Man Festival is known for its fire, sculptures, theme camps, and its unusually attired participants. The photos are primarily shot in a portable, tent-like photographic studio that he transports and constructs on the playa where Burning Man takes place. Dealing with overwhelming dust storms, heat, and extremely loud art cars, Nelson has photographed over 200 participants since he started the project in 2005. From these photos emerged this unconventional show, A Tribe of Artists: Costumes and Culture at Burning Man.
Nelson has been a professional photographer for over thirty years having started his career in the Bay Area. He graduated from the University of California at Berkeley and has widely exhibited throughout the United States. Nelson has published a number of books, including "Les Anges Nus" in 2000 that deals with illuminating images of mythical creatures. He has been going to Burning Man for ten years and started his own theme camp, "Mohammed's Mini Martini and Erotica Camp," six years ago where he constructs and deconstructs his temporary photo booth every year.
The Western Folklife Center is putting out a call to all local Burning Man attendees to assist them in the planning and production of a celebratory program and reception for this new exhibition honoring the creativity and traditions of Burning Man. Anyone interested in learning more about this event planned for the end of April, please contact Meg Glaser at Western Folklife Center, 775-738-7508.
This exhibit was organized by the Nevada Arts Council, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs. A Tribe of Artists: Costumes and Culture at Burning Man is part of the Nevada Touring Initiative—Traveling Exhibition Program and is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Nevada State Legislature.
The Wiegand Gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. Admission is $5.00 for adults, $3.00 for students and seniors, and $1.00 for children ages 6-12. Western Folklife Center members are free; members' adult guests are $3.00. Admission to the Gallery is free on the first Saturday of every month.
The mission of the Western Folklife Center is to enhance the vitality of American life through the experience, understanding, and appreciation of the diverse cultural heritage of the American West.
Photographs available upon request.
