The Uchronians: Christo Meets the Blowtorch?

Christo and Jeanne-Claude have had their share of detractors. Many have sneeringly wondered, why would anyone wrap the countryside in crinoline or hang offensively orange flags throughout Central Park? But to date no one has dared ask, what would happen if Christo and Jeanne-Claude decided to put a blowtorch to their projects rather than simply dismantle them? Setting aside the uselessness of hypothetical questions, my guess is that a Christo/blowtorch combo would result in something that strongly resembles the "Burning Man" project by the artistic, philosophical group, the Uchronians.

In August 2006, a team of more than 40 previously unacquainted individuals named themselves the Uchronians (u=without, chronos=time) and followed their Belgian project leaders to a desert in Black Rock City, Nevada. The purpose of this pilgrimage? To build a time machine.

Construction of the time machine lasted from August 16 through August 27. Upon completion, the 150 kg of timber resulted in a structure with floor span of 60 by 30 meters and height 15 of meters.

So where and when was this time machine headed? Well, to be precise, nowhere. In spite of the sculpture's mammoth size, the dozens of people who worked to build it, tons of timber utilized and the "Uchronians" flag firmly planted at the construction site, no one ever intended for the time machine to be more than a piece of conceptual art.

The concept, according to one Uchronian's blog, was to send "a message from the future," from a place that reflected "purity of intent." A shared belief that "everything stands still in the desert" compounded the notion that this Nevada desert would be the ideal slate on which to deliver the "message."

And so, the Uchronians flew to the desert with (a lot of) timber and a dream, as well as a satellite probe, computers, Internet capability and a team of chefs. The group spent a grueling 11 days building the conceptual time machine; they faced sand storms, blistering heat, sunstroke, altitude and sheer filth.

What does one do with a time machine wholly unable to penetrate the space/time continuum? Set the useless thing aflame and burn it to the ground. Obviously.

The Uchronians celebrated their achievement with an apocalyptic bonfire that melted the time machine into a heap of ashes.

According to the Uchronians' website, "this community of creative people is a think tank and mood factory" that generates ideas and works to realize them. Acting as a bridge between "materialism and spiritualism," the Uchronians operate under four basic tenets: ecology, art, simulation and experience. By their own definition, ecology refers to the achievement of a "sustainable balance" between man and nature. One can present this "sustainable balance" in the form of art, which "confronts us with ourselves" and therefore contains the possibility to "save the world." The simulation portion of the credo lends to a discussion of technology's dangers and benefits. Finally, the experience aspect of Uchronian philosophy suggests that by unlocking "the world of sensation" one gains access to "the essence of life."

In and of itself fire is striking — it is one of the few natural phenomena that man has yet to entirely tame and control. Digital photographs of "Burning Man" attest to the visual impressiveness of the project. And so, while one could make a decent argument that the "Burning Man" was an artistic success, these Uchronians have a bit of explaining to do if they want to convince anyone that the project was environmentally sound or sustainable. How is chopping down tons of timber to create a "time-machine" that goes nowhere considerate of the planet? What's more, if you're going to build an enormous non-functional sculpture, why not leave it up for people to visit rather than burning it down and releasing (not a little) carbon monoxide into the environment. Certainly, there is nothing "sustainable" about destroying something immediately after it has been built.

No Uchronian has ever explicitly stated the purpose of the time machine or what this "message" from the future is. In fact, one member actually notes that only the Uchronians themselves will ever know the point of all this was. This individual concludes his blog with the cryptic statement, "Out of the ashes, Uchronia rises."