80,000

Burning Man, from a drone in 2022

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After two years of absence due to the health crisis, the Burning Man festival made a grand return. For this 9-day edition in 2022, nearly 80,000 festival-goers trod the sands of the Black Rock Desert in Nevada. And it was truly a sight to behold! For the first time since its creation, a show featuring 250 drones criss-crossed the Nevada sky, delivering a full-scale space invader spectacle.

Although ephemeral, Burning Man is one of the most anticipated artistic events in the United States. After two years of interruption due to the Covid-19 crisis, the grand festival makes a return for a Burning Man 2022 edition that promises to be wild! In addition to the usual caravans, magical decorations, and provocative artistic sculptures, the Black Rock City pulled out all the stops: nearly 250 drones played space invaders in the sky above the sands of the Black Rock Desert.

But what is Burning Man? It’s the world’s largest temporary artistic ecosystem. For 9 days, community creators and organizers come together to celebrate art and local initiatives from around the world. These individuals, called “Burners,” gather in the Nevada desert to create Black Rock City, a temporary metropolis.

Characterized for its unconventional culture, Burning Man is dedicated to producing a positive spiritual change on a global scale. “Our intention is to generate a society that connects each individual to their creative powers, to community participation, to the wider domain of civic life, and to the even larger world of nature that exists beyond society,” is written on the event’s official website.

However, Burning Man does not want to be defined as a festival but rather as a gathering of a community, at the heart of a temporary city in the Nevada desert. This event is known for the festive cremation of a giant puppet, in reference to its name Burning Man, meaning “the burning man” in French.

For this 2022 edition, more than 80,000 festival-goers, called “Burners,” gathered at Black Rock City. And as every year, the show was on point, but even more so this year! Each artistic creation is dedicated to art, self-expression, and autonomy for all.

To make a mark, the BRC 2022 wished to create a unique show in which over 250 drones played space invaders in the sky under the theme “Waking Dreams.” These were piloted by the festival-goers themselves. A regulation was carefully established to ensure compliance with the general flying conditions, in accordance with Black Rock City’s safety guidelines. These drones then delivered a spectacle at more than 400 feet, away from the crowds and emergency teams, and, of course, outside of the period of the Temple’s burning.


—Hasan Jasim

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