Mona arts are a series of arts follow Alice in Wonderland Theme & inviting the world to fund its creation.

Mona struggles with the expectations and constraints placed on her by society. As she navigates the strange and unpredictable world of Wonderland, she learns to embrace her true self, unique qualities and strengths.

Mona-Mushroom

Destined for Burning Man 2024: Curiouser & Curiouser - Be Curious Mona Mushroom.

The ancient fungus, which has been living within the mycelial network beneath the playa for over a billion years, has decided to emerge from the ground out of curiosity. It is home to the smoking caterpillar, which advises Mona of its multifold uses: eating one side makes you larger, eating the other side makes you small. What’s more, the magical mushroom allows us to explore the weirdness and depths of our inner worlds. The mushroom represents life, the magic of the playa, and us: Just like fungi come in a wide variety of shapes, colors and purposes, each of us is a different, unique Mona on its own fantastical journey through wonderland.

The artwork is an 8-meter-tall pink mushroom sculpture made of stainless steel. It will be fabricated in Hangzhou, China prior to the Burn and shipped across the ocean to Burning Man to be installed on the playa. Even though artwork is made of solid metal, it is meticulously designed to appear soft and organic like a soft toy or inflated balloon material, creating a strong visual contrast between its delicate look but sturdy constitution.

...AND THIS IS PRETTY COOL

The Mona-Mushroom sculpture is a large-scale interactive artwork depicting a mushroom. The toadstool can be entered through a wormhole, and will be complemented by ambient music inside the mushroom and fog and light art projected onto the gills of the fungus. The inside of the hole is made of mirror-smooth metals, forming a mirrored cavity, allowing the citizens of the playa to find bizarre projections of themselves. Furthermore, inside the wormhole, LED screens play light arts that people can enter and interact with. To enhance the surreality of the experience, ambient music will be playing inside of the mushroom that we are currently producing using modular synthesizers, to purposefully reflect what it would sound like inside of a mushroom.

The exterior of the mushroom sculpture will feature laser art lights and artificial fog, creating dynamically morphing projections in the air that citizens can try to catch and play with. The fantastically oversized mushroom grows from the sand, emerging from dust storms during the day and swirling in laser-lit fog at night to create a visually surreal experience. Together, this will transform the fungus and its mycelial surroundings into an enchanting dreamscape where people sing, dance, and wander through the illumination in an Alice in Wonderland fantasy. Due to its size and salient color, Mona mushroom will be a visual landmark for many, while its wormhole will provide shelter for some during exacerbated weather conditions.

To further enhance interactivity, we welcome other artists and volunteers of Blackrock City to collaborate and display their visual and auditory art in the mushroom.

AND...WE NEED YOUR HELP

We are seeking funds to complete our project, transport it to the Playa, and help pave a legacy for its future exhibition. More specifically, we are focusing on:

Creation of series of Mona pieces from Alice in Wonderland
Assistance with travel costs to exhibit the piece
Help develop a legacy for its preservation and future exhibition, deliver a message that one should embrace her/he true self, unique qualities and strength while navigates the strange and unpredictable world of Wonderland.

The best way to help make the Mona Arts possible is by donating whatever you can afford - any value is truly welcome!

If you would like to participate, please contact monamiaoart@gmail.com .

What you'll get in addition to helping the project

We’ve got some incredible rewards, and collector's items to gift to those who help :)

WHO ARE WE?

Design by the lead artist He Miao, Mona Mushroom follows the Mona Bunny from Burning Man 2023 and follows the same of Alice in Wonderland theme. The mushroom will be sculptured to evoke a soft, organic feeling, even though it is very strong, made of a single piece of stainless steel. Follow the rabbit to join us in exploring this wonderful mushroom world.

Photo by: @ml_docphotography

Mona Mushroom

Team Members