Burning Man 2019

Burning Man - Ticket - Illustrations/Design

I was asked to create the ticket to the 2019 Burning Man event using the theme ‘Metamorphoses’. It was important to me to stay away from obvious choices like butterflies and cocoons because I knew a lot of the art this year was going to revolve around that, I wanted this imagery to stand out from those choices. After some initial brainstorming, sketching, and research I started to really like the idea of using alchemy diagrams for the inspiration for this years’ ticket. I have always loved the visuals used in these diagrams for their mystical feel and implied importance - they just feel like they hold important information. I think the best ones hold back the most obvious information and require the viewer to really dig into the details to understand the totality of what they convey.

I wanted the diagram that I created for the ticket to tell a story beyond being a reaction to the old images. So I created the path/journey of creative inspiration - the alchemy of inspiration to fruition. If you look at the design you will see the alchemist grabbing inspiration from the universe. The inspiration/idea travels to the other hand (representing research and hard work), then travels through the heart (passion and desire), and finally breaks out of the body of the alchemist as it travels to Black Rock City (this is a satellite photograph of the Black Rock Desert) where it is fully realized and shines back into the universe to be grasped again. The cycle repeats.