Always Another Sunrise (AAS) is an art piece celebrating the universal experiences of gratitude, hope, and new beginnings.  AAS is love letter to Black Rock City, created by merging solar design motifs, innovative engineering, mystical music, and playful curiosity.

By contributing to our Crowdfundr campaign you are helping co-create this piece by providing vital funding for the purchase of building materials (eg wood paneling), truck transportation to Black Rock Desert (400 miles!), and so much more! 

The Inspiration: Lead artist and engineer, Chelsey Hathman, was inspired to build this music box after surviving a grueling Burning Man heatwave and exodus in 2022, followed by a transcendental sunrise meditation. In 2024 they felt called to create an art piece that honored the peaceful freedom of new beginnings, and to share the gift of that experience with their community in the Bay Area, Black Rock City, and beyond.  

The Design: The music box design is as intricate as it is enchanting. The external frame of the music box will be a carousel style cylinder standing 20ft wide and 10ft tall. To begin the music box’s 60 second song, visitors can wind it up and marvel as the exterior rotates revealing intricate design panels catching the sunlight. On the interior of the box, visitors can duck inside the cylinder to be welcomed by an array of zoetropes that are programmed to "dance" to the song as it plays. At night, the piece will shine with sparkling lights that will invite visitors to lounge inside the music box and reflect on their own new beginnings and “sunrises" that have shaped their life.

The People: The AAS team is built on values of inclusivity and freedom of expression, by utilizing a creative team of queer and BIPOC artists. This project is co-led by Chelsey Hathman and Kati Kallins, but is only made possible with the amazing support of our Zoetrope creative designers, onsite build crews at the Exploratorium, graphic design team, fundraising team, Cloudy AF Burning Man camp as well as our BRC build and strike crew. 

Thank you for visiting our Crowdfundr page, we appreciate you supporting this art piece and helping the Always Another Sunrise team make it to Playa in summer 2024!