A Temple to Human Thought

Hey there!  We are building a beautiful, detailed 30x40-ft Library of 3000 deconstructed books to bring to Burning Man and we would love your help! 

We were thrilled to receive an honorarium for Burning Man 2020, however, due to Covid-19 Burning Man and funding has been put off for a year. We are fortunate to have collected a significant amount of free materials (around 2000 books) and lumber, and to have rented an ideal studio in Mountain View.  Now we need help to continue to build for the Playa in 2021.

As our society transforms from a physical to ever more virtual world, physical books are being discarded as a less relevant medium for disseminating information. These materials, the by product of centuries of intellectual energy, are now becoming a debris field of human thought. We were inspired to construct this building, not as a traditional library, but as a structure whose very walls are infused with printed words, maps, illustrations and personalized notes, and where the spirit of the written word echos through recorded sound.  The ideas of science, the records of history and the creativity of literature, music and art become artifacts of beauty, whimsy and curiosity. This piece is meant to reveal the boundless potential of human thought, creativity and collaboration as well as question how time can change our understanding of what once was considered relevant and precious. 

This extra year to build, allows for many exciting new additions to come to fruition, but also creates numerous extra costs, such as an additional year of rent.  Your contribution, no matter the size, means so much to our success. Plus, your contribution can score some nice swag, from wearables to one-of-a-kind works of art that are not available in any other venue.

Please show your support and donate -- help us bring this work to life. We look forward to seeing you in the dust in 2021. 

Our Goals

To complete the project, we still need about $25,000 for expenses such as rent, utilities, lumber, hardware, shipping, glue and, because Unbound will have a life after the playa, lots of polyurethane to protect the materials from light and dust.

• At this time, we are hoping to raise $12,000 to cover build materials as well as rent for the next six months. 
• We have perks from sticker book plates  to"Unbound Arts" t-shirts and hoodies, a pewter necklace or a selection of original artworks from the artist. View Unbound Website website to see the variety of her work over the years, www.julianelsongal@gmail.com

Your Impact

Your contribution allows us to bring to life a unique object of beauty, one that lives on in the Default World, but most importantly a contemplative space on Playa where the soul of these materials creates a reminder that humanity is constantly building from the contributions of the past.  

The Artists

Jules, a mixed media artist, and her husband, Dave, have been involved with numerous Burning Man projects. We have worked with David Best, Michael Garlington, Dana Albany, Dan Sullivan and Peter Loughran.  This year it was time to bring our own piece. We also build a theme camp each year called The Black Rock Tea Company and serve on the Documentary Photo Team. 

Importance of Community

What we have learned from these experiences is the importance of community in bringing a piece of art of this ambition to fruition. We are blessed with great friends and volunteers who are bringing their skills in architecture, engineering, and construction. We have volunteers contributing resources, time, objects and words. Please join our community any way you can. 

Risks & Challenges

When the pandemic hit, we lost the ability to have our volunteers help us with the build on a day-to-day effort. Yet we gained an extra year to work on the piece.  So we have spent this extra time working through structural issues, prototyping building details and refining design ideas.  

The biggest risk for the project would be that restrictions aren't lifted and another year of Burning Man is cancelled as this would create additional costs for storage and shipping. 

Another risk to the project is that library deaccession sales, which have been our source for books, may be delayed in reopening.  We've acquired nearly 2000 books but need many more to complete the project. 

Other Ways You Can Help

There are other ways to contribute. You can get involved in the following ways:

• Send us readings of your favorite poems or writings. We need spoken word, poetry and stories recorded in MP3 format in segments no longer than 5 minutes each. See Unboundarts.org for more details on how to contribute. 
• We need hardbound books with linen covers. If you have books you would like to donate to us and are in the Bay Area, please contact us through our website. 
• If you would like to work on the project with us, let us know. Our studio space is large, open and can host a few volunteers at a time right now. 
• You can also help us by letting your friends know about our project. Follow us on instagram @Unbound2020 or share our information through Facebook or Indiegogo.
• THANKS so much for reading to the end!