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Finding the Light

Temporary Outdoor Exhibition

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Every year, an arts migration of monumental scale makes its way to the Black Rock Desert in Nevada. An interactive expanse of nearly 4,000 acres of desert playa becomes Black Rock City. This is Burning Man.  

Founded in 1986 by a small group of friends on a beach in San Francisco, Burning Man has grown to become, for one week every summer, the third-largest city in Nevada. Citizens, or “burners,” are invited to explore an immersive arts landscape like no other.  

In 2024, Bend artist Kevin Necessary made the trek to the desert playa. With him were four steel and stained-glass monoliths. When constructed, the four giant structures become a cathedral of light, where the shadows and colors of the stained plexiglass emphasize and interact with the surrounding landscape. 

This is Finding the Light, a 20-foot art installation that stood among the desert city of Burning Man 2024. It is now on view temporarily at the High Desert Museum. 

“At the heart of this piece is the idea of congregation — a gathering of individuals drawn to light and shadow,” said Necessary.  

Located on the path toward the E. L. Wiegand Ponderosa Playscape, the sculpture stands out among its natural surroundings, much like it did on the desert playa. The monoliths alone are abstract geometric forms, which can be explored and interacted with throughout the day. Made from steel and plexiglass, the sculpture depicts a beautiful church. As the sun heads to the west, the shadows and colors of the stained glass begin to elongate and change, dancing in and around the ponderosa pines and the desert soil.

Visitors walking the trail will be mesmerized by the colors and the ever-changing light display. Walk up to the sculpture, experience the colorful shadows up close, and find the light as the sun crosses the sky.