The Transfestive Consciousness of Chinese Burning Man

Burning Man, the prototypical transformational event culture, has been described as “a guerrilla war against alienated spectacle and the commodification of the collective imagination.” At the same time, it has spawned spectacular efforts at the commodification of experience that span the United States, China, and Taiwan. This talk, based on the author’s long-term role as a Burning Man artist and regional event representative, offers a history of Burning Man’s varied regional manifestations. Tracing these connections offers a weirdly scenic vantage point for considering the global collision, recreation, and transformation of culture and consciousness.