Lego camp is composed on three interlocking concepts via three theme areas: Play, Interact, and the Lego Art Car decoration. The concepts are Environment (Play), Community (Interact), and Freedom ( the Lego Art Car). Play contains 4 environmental regions that intermix: sand, water, playa, and jungle. Interact, is a set of low tables with cushions and comfortable chairs for building elaborate Lego sculptures. Lego Art Car decoration is a US Postal Jeep covered in Lego sheeting, which patterns of Legos and sculptures can be attached. All areas will be shaded and surrounded by a 25 cm. high fence to prevent Legos from blowing away. Each concept plays a role in what to me fun and creativity is all about, as interpreted through the Lego medium. Legos are fun, Burning Man is fun. Both contain the essence of creativity, the idea and feeling that anything can be imagined, built, created, shared, and seen. The only limitation is time. This is what art is all about. I expect the two in combination to bring out a childlike glee in all participants that there are still simple pleasures of childhood that time can not corrupt. This is the essence of what Lego camp is about at Burning Man 1998.
IN DEPTH DESCRIPTIONS FOR: INTERACT, PLAY, ART CAR
INTERACT
Interact, the heart of Lego camp, is a comfortable environmental space designed to encourage conversation and interaction for the random mix of visitors and strangers that compose the instant tribe of Burning Man, with Legos as one of the impetuses and starting points for this kind of community. A place where Lego memories of childhood are revisited, and new ones are created. Interaction is expected to be stocked with round medium size low tables, cushions to sit and lean against, light chairs and couches. The medium size tables will be big enough that some pieces will be out of reach and require fellow builders to converse in order to get missing pieces. The flooring will be plywood, with Lego sheeting as decking, so that Lego sculptures can be built from the ground up, as well as easily swept up into new piles. In an interpretive sense, the Lego sheeting gives a sense to the visitors that they are moving jumbo Legos. In order to complete this illusion 900 sq. feet of sheeting/plating will be required. Hanging from the ceiling, Chris De MontereyÕsÕ Lego Burning Man will be benevolently watching over. Chris is the lead builder of the very real, very big, 40 ft. wood and neon Burning Man that in real life towers over the entire event.
On one side and in the rear will be a shelving area for those that wish to who wish to display their works or simply be able to come back to modify or improve their sculptural efforts at any hour on any of the eight days of the event. Since the Lego inventory will be constantly depleted by those that display their works, a minimum of 400 lbs. of Legos will be required. If 10% of the Burning Man attendees build in the Interact area with just one pound a piece of Legos and only 1/3rd display their works, then recycling of non-displayed objects should mean 400 lbs is enough. Though, if an overwhelming amount of Legos were available then larger pieces could be constructed and walls and other architectural structures could be build on the edges of the Interact area to add to the feeling of being surrounded by Legos. Hanging from the ceilings and demarking the edges of the area will be glowing Lego lights. Essentially Christmas lights encased by Legos that have been drilled out to allow the multi-colored glowing bulbs. Documentation of the builders and their efforts will occur with a laptop and a digital camera so their efforts will live forever forward on the World Wide Web. Because Interact is a large comfortable meeting area (30x30), other activities where groups can watch, learn, and participate will take place. Specifically play with the Mindstorms Robotic Invention System and classes in Edventures .
The demonstrations and play with new Lego MINDSTORMS Robotic Invention System will give most attendees their first chance to play and see this exciting new product in Interact. Tim Gnatek accompanied by Fudro, a master builder and MIT engineering student, on this stop of the RoboTour '98 will offer much to share and demo on site. Also taking place in Interact, will be demonstrations by Richard Wright and his crew from PCS Education Systems will be demonstrating Edventures with Legos. The PCS Edventures Academy of Engineering teaches the basic foundations of Mechanical Engineering, Structures in Architecture, and Software Engineering through the use of Legos.
PLAY
Play, is a reflection of the outdoorsy wildness and sense of exploration that makes the Black Rock playa so special. Play, is a mix of toy environments with water, playa, sand, and jungle intermix to sparkle the imagination for role playing. Each physical environment represents in some way the actual wild environment that constantly surround and amaze the Burning Man attendees. The Play area allows participants to easily interact with the environment as a character and their Lego characters and creations. The combination of environments should allow wide freedom of creative opportunities for role playing and scenario development.
A few imagined scenarios:
Lego cars zooming across the mini-playa attempting to break Craig BaldwinÕs land speed record. A set of Lego characters conversing and lounging at the hot springs/water area, who are suddenly attacked by a yellow Lego submarine.
Layout:
The four environmental regions are sand, water, playa, and jungle. Overall, the total area for the Play area is 30 feet across, and maybe as much as 60 feet deep. With pockets of water scattered around all areas, some 2 feet deep, others shallow stream like beds. The playa area will be focused on the front of the Play area to make the entire region more welcoming and open. Behind the playa, will be the clumps of the jungle area using high foliage, small plants. The sand dunes (about a pickup trucks worth) will be to the left of the jungle area and curve behind it as a low knoll. On the other side will be the main water area. Please examine the enclosed diagram for the current sketch. Soon to be available on the web. Twenty pounds of Lego characters and toys should be effective.
LEGO ART CAR
Lego Art Car, is a place where one can do something a tad more long lasting then what one plays with and constructs at the other two areas. The results of the Lego Art Car decoration will prove to be the most permanent element of Lego camp since it will be on display at other art events and seen often on the streets in the San Francisco Bay Area. Using a 1975 Postal Jeep, because its form is one of the most toy like and life scale vehicles on the planet, I will first cover it with Lego sheeting. The sheeting will allow anyone to add their individual efforts onto the car. Thus, allowing and encouraging those that wander by to decorate the vehicle into a full blown Art Car without the use of toxic glue. Art Cars, and Burning Man have a long combined history. Both are interpretations of individuality that Burning Man is so about, but until now, one had to own ones own car and decorate it off Playa and bring it to Burning Man for display. This Art car will be the first time where anyone can non-destructively and easily create and add to an Art Car. The very nature of Legos attached like normal Legos allows patterns to be created, Lego sculptures to be attached, and for the work itself to ebb and flow as the passerbyÕs interest does. The Jeep, will be known as Lego Jeep, because all Art Cars have names. My specific touch, beyond putting on the Lego sheeting, will be to cover the windows on the inside with hundreds of assorted Lego windows, to be sandwiched between the Jeeps real window and a sheet of Plexiglas on three of the sides. The various additions and changes as the week passes by will be documented and placed on the World Wide Web. After Burning Man, the vehicle will be on display and available for modification in San Francisco at the Art Car West Fest in October 98, and then again at the Houston Art Car Fest in March of 1999, this time in front of 100,000 people.
ATTIRE:
All the campers of Lego Village are expected to have jumpsuits to identify they are part of Lego Camp and are on site to answer questions, document, and help visitors build. The jumpsuits will be individually decorated with Legos, allowing Legos and Lego sculptures to be attached to the Legos glued on at numerous spots.
OTHER:
A Lego camp stamp will be created for stamping the passports some Burning Man attendees carry with them. Information about the new LegoLand could be on site for those interested. A plaque thanking the Lego corporation of donations of materials will be prominent in the Interact area.
CONCLUSION:
This will be fun!
SUM OF MATERIALS REQUESTED:
500 pounds of Legos, random assortment
Why 500 pounds? It is the best guess of what will be required to have a minor surplus while occupying 20 people at once for seven days with inventory being reduced by the sculptures taken out for display. Fifty of these pounds will be used for the Play area, and 50 pounds for decoration of the Lego Jeep Art Car decoration.
Plates
A huge amount. Basically enough to cover a jeep, 5 tables, and the flooring surface of the Interact area (30 x30) . Best guesstimate is at least 250 sheets of the 1.5 ft x 1.5 ft sheeting.