Heartburst
Location: Black Rock City, Nevada — Burning Man 2023: Animalia Size: 30' x 30' x 15' Status: Built Program: Temporary Spectacular
chevron_leftA Burning-Man Art Spectacular
OFFICEUNTITLED co-founders Benjamin Anderson, Christian Robert, and Shawn Gehle conceived Heartburst for Burning Man 2023: Animalia. The project expresses their appreciation for the gathering’s art, community, and desert environment.
A team of designers, technical advisors, and volunteers brought the installation to life. Together, they created Heartburst as a gift to the Burning Man community. The installation invites visitors to explore its structure and surrounding landscape. In turn, this experience encourages connection, reflection, and a greater awareness of place.
Make No Small Plans
The Playa occupies a dry lakebed within Nevada’s Black Rock Desert. Although beautiful, the environment presents extreme conditions. Vast horizons and open terrain dominate the landscape.
Within this immense setting, Heartburst creates an anchoring moment. The installation introduces a human-scaled space for gathering and contemplation. At the same time, its entrances reframe views of the desert.
Celebrating the Potential of a Rapidly Renewing Material
Bamboo, Mindfulness, and Connection
Heartburst encourages visitors to slow down and remain present. Therefore, its spatial experience supports physical, psychological, and communal well-being.
Bamboo strengthens this grounding experience through its natural color and texture. Moreover, the material helps visitors consider nature’s role within the built environment.
The simple bamboo grid creates a calming and centering atmosphere. Meanwhile, four heart-shaped entrances invite people into the structure. Shared intersections inside the installation celebrate diversity and encourage people to come together.
Materially Unexpected
A Responsible Material Strategy
OU chose bamboo to support Burning Man’s sustainability goals. The plant grows rapidly and offers an environmentally responsible alternative to conventional building materials.
As a result, Heartburst demonstrates how natural materials can create memorable spatial experiences. The project also considers construction, transportation, and its broader environmental impact.
OU partnered with SEAD Build, a Malaysian bamboo company. Lucas Loo leads the company and guided the material selection process. In addition, SEAD Build helped the team identify durable and ecologically positive bamboo.
Lifecycle calculations show that the bamboo stores more carbon than its production and transportation release. Consequently, the material supports OU’s commitment to responsible design.
Conceived for Rapid Assembly and Disassembly
Building Efficiently on the Playa
The installation required extensive work by hand. However, OU developed a system for quick assembly during Burning Man’s build week. The same system helped the team dismantle the structure efficiently after the event.
The crew connected the bamboo members with metal wire lashings and standard rebar-tying tools. Additionally, sixteen helical earth anchors secured the structure. These anchors reduced its impact on the Playa’s sensitive ground surface.
The team added bolts to several connections for greater strength. Furthermore, diagonal steel cables and turnbuckles stabilized the installation. These elements helped Heartburst withstand climbing and wind gusts of up to 75 miles per hour.
Prefabrication and Component Tracking
Tracking Every Component
The gridline, or “slice,” contained up to six panel sections. OU designed every panel around the dimensions of a standard 26-foot box truck.
First, the team assembled the panels at OU’s Culver City office. Next, the crew transported them to Black Rock City. Finally, volunteers raised and connected the sections on the Playa.
The teams tracked every bamboo component through three consecutive systems. First, the Malaysian team marked each precut pole by length and structural purpose. Then, a second label identified each large panel’s position within the sequence. Finally, the crew sorted loose poles according to height and installation location.
Together, these systems simplified transportation, organization, assembly, and disassembly. They also helped the team transform individual bamboo poles into a unified gathering place.
