BRCvr, the award-winning virtual version of Black Rock City, will present Re-Burn-23 this month. The global virtual Burning Man-inspired event can be accessed via Zoom and AltspaceVR. It will run from January 27 to January 29, 2023, and will include exciting additions to its lineup, such as the metaverse environment “Blind Burners World.”
What Is Re-Burn-23?
Re-Burn-23 is a three-day immersive virtual event that will bring together artists, technologists, Burners, the Burner-curious, and other creatives in a Burning Man-inspired event.
It will feature new additions, such as Blind Burners World, as well as popular immersive worlds from previous virtual burn events. “We are taking the principle of ‘Communal Effort’ to a whole new level, bringing technologies and artists together in a robust collaboration that integrates 360 video from the 2022 burn with 3D digital assets, continuing our efforts to bring a rich Burner experience to the globe,” said Athena Demos, co-founder of BRCvr, in a press release shared with ARPost.
Re-Burn-23 is organized by Big Rock Creative (BRC), an award-winning company that crafts unique XR experiences. Offered as a gift to enthusiasts, this virtual event will be free of charge for interested individuals.
The event can be accessed by a global audience via Zoom, for mobile and desktop devices, and AltspaceVR, for VR headsets, Macs, and PCs. The wide accessibility via VR and 2D is an effort to bring about radical inclusion. Re-Burn-23 will be the final virtual burn event that will be hosted on the Microsoft AltspaceVR platform, since the platform is, unfortunately, shutting down on March 10 this year.
Blind Burners World
Re-Burn-23 will feature many new additions, and one of them is Blind Burners World.
Blind Burners World is the first-ever immersive metaverse environment that will showcase works by artists with visual impairment. In partnership with Blind Burners – a community of blind, partially sighted, and sighted artists and performers – Blind Burners World is designed to be navigable by sound. It will feature a gallery showcasing art and photography by artists with blindness and low vision, a Temple of Accessibility, and a Galactic Sound Garden. Each artwork will come with an audio description made and recorded by the artist.
“When Burning Man communities moved online in 2020, Athena and the team at BRCvr were the first to embrace our call for accessibility in the metaverse,” said Blind Burners founder, Chris Hainsworth. “Without accessibility, cultural claims to radical inclusion are as shallow as a teacup.”
BRCvr Immersive Documentary Experience
On Re-Burn-23, participants will have the opportunity to watch a preview of the BRCvr Immersive Documentary Experience. It will be presented in a format of mixed reality storytelling in an immersive documentary application. The preview will feature live-action content captured during the 2022 on-playa burn in Black Rock City and will allow participants to engage and share this new experience.
Re-Burn-23 will feature other events including Sovereign Light 2023, Daisy Shaw’s World Tour of Re-Burn-23, a content creator meet and greet, artist talks, and even a “Bad Movies and Pizza Party” event, where participants can enjoy watching bad movies while eating pizza.
