The Tower of Babel to The Tower of Ultra

The Tower of Babel was my debut large-scale projection mapping project, created for Root Society at Burning Man 2010. It became the foundation of a continuing stage project: six months after its debut in Black Rock City, we rebuilt the concept in Miami as The Tower of Ultra for Ultra Music Festival 2011. I served as Video Director, VJ and Content Creator across the project.

Built at Burning Man

The original stage was an eight-bay-wide by three-bay-tall scaffolding structure, with a DJ booth embedded into the center and dancers framed inside the architecture. Root Society was founded and led by Monster.com founder Jeff Taylor, who performed as Jefr Tale and financed the camp as a large-scale experiment in music, art, and community.

The mapping approach was beautifully direct: two 20,000 lumen 4:3 projectors were aligned side-by-side across the facade, turning the scaffold skin into one massive panoramic video surface. The result was a towering canvas for live visuals during sets from The Crystal Method, Bassnectar, DJ Dan, Santiago & Bushido, and more.

A major part of the build was finding the right screen material for the transparency effect we wanted. The concept used three different fabric transparencies, with the densest layer in back and the thinnest layer in front, so projected light could travel through the surface and terminate at different depths for a dimensional effect. We spent months testing fabrics, colors, and manufacturers, then worked with industry-leading theatrical supplier Rose Brand to source fabric wide enough for the nine-foot scaffolding bays. Independent tailors added grommets and reinforcement so the panels could be installed cleanly, survive the desert, and be reused after Burning Man.

The lineup board for the Tower of Babel listed sets from The Crystal Method, Bassnectar, DJ Dan, Santiago & Bushido, DJ Icon, Joe Lasher, Mike Balance, Joe Peepz, Nick Thayer, David Glade, Josh Gabriel, Jody Wisternoff, Broken Robot, Miguel Richards, AfroBeta, Star Eyes, Fort Knox Five, David Starfire, An-ten-nae, STAMP, Elite Force, Zodiac Cartel, Will Bailey, Filthy Rich, Electric Soulside, Adam Freemer, Keith Mackenzie, and Kids at the Bar.

Rebuilt as The Tower of Ultra

After the response at Burning Man, Ultra Music Festival invited the team to bring the experience to Miami. The scaffolding, elevated central DJ position, layered projection surfaces, and panoramic visual language were adapted for a conventional festival site and presented as The Tower of Ultra in March 2011, alongside Root Society’s 90-foot geodesic dome.

Contemporary reporting confirms both The Tower of Ultra and the Root Society Dome as distinct stages at Ultra 2011. Miami New Times described the Tower as a dome-covered environment with the DJs elevated on its central structure; Jambands described the performance position high inside a roughly 50-foot illuminated wall; and Resident Advisor’s surviving schedule documents a Tower lineup that included Rusko, Skream & Benga, Nero, Excision & Datsik, Feed Me, Goldie, Fresh, Netsky, The Glitch Mob, Skrillex, 12th Planet, and more.

The Root Society and BAO Dome

The Tower was part of a larger Root Society environment that also included the 90-foot geodesic dome. Ultra’s 2011 schedules list the Root Society Dome separately from the Mid Park Tower, while 2012 coverage identifies the dome’s next Miami iteration as the BAO Dome. The FADER reported on the 2012 geodesic environment and its elevated performance platform, and contemporary schedules place Jefr Tale and Electric Soulside among the artists performing there.

The Tower itself continued beyond Miami at WEMF in 2011 and 2012. Together, these appearances turned an experimental Burning Man build into a repeatable touring stage system and established the projection-mapping approach that informed much of our later festival work.

Camp: Root Society
Original debut: Burning Man 2010, Black Rock City
Festival adaptation: The Tower of Ultra, Miami, 2011
Related environment: Root Society Dome / BAO Dome, Ultra 2011–2012
Additional appearances: WEMF 2011 and 2012
System: two side-by-side 20,000 lumen 4:3 projectors
Structure: eight scaffolding bays wide by three bays tall
Morgan Lavery: Video Director, VJ and Content Creator

201020112012Burning ManUltra Music FestivalWEMFBAO DomeBassnectarContent CreationDJ DanLive VJLive VisualsProjection MappingRoot SocietySantiago & BushidoScaffolding StageThe Crystal MethodThe TowerThe Tower of BabelThe Tower of UltraVideo Direction