STOP BUILDING IN CONCRETE! Dive into the ultimate urban design challenge: Black Rock City, the 80,000-person temporary metropolis that pops up in the Nevada desert only to disappear just as quickly.
We sit down with the visionary co-founder and Chief Culture Officer, Harley Dubois, who steered this massive, innovative community for decades. Harley unveils the rigorous process of trial-by-error and human-centered design that established the city's unique architectural structure, including its circular shape, calculated street widths, and the specific scale required to activate its central plazas.
Learn the unexpected journey of how Harley became the de facto city planner: After graduating from art school and being dropped into the chaotic, artistic Cacophony society, she discovered her true strength was not only painting, but administration, realizing she needed to step in because "stuff wasn't getting done". She details her pivotal shift from artist to city manager—a demanding role covering everything from infrastructure to life safety for over 35 years.
Find out why this highly successful pedestrian-only city provides critical lessons in impermanence and civic-mindedness for architects and designers shaping the built world.
Harley’s social:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/harley-dubois-82150921/
Burning Man website:
https://burningman.org/
Other links for more info:
8 Ways to Make Your City More Like Burning Man
https://www.governing.com/archive/gov-burning-man-takeaways.html
What Cities Can Learn From Burning Man
https://www.governing.com/archive/gov-burning-man.html
There’s a city in my mind
https://theconversation.com/theres-a-city-in-my-mind-78337