Thank you for supporting Black Rock Arts Foundation, we invite you to join us for the first evening of our new lecture series, Elemental Interactions: FIRE. These new events are designed as conversational evenings about an exciting topic. Enjoy demos, talks and performances at the eclectic Burning Man headquarters!

Elemental Interactions kicks off at 6:30pm on Thursday, March 13 with an exploration of the physics of fire and its and history as a performative medium. The event will feature these exciting guests:

• Hosted by Crimson Rose, Administrative Director and Pyrotechnic Performance Director for Burning Man and BRAF Board Member.
• Members of the Flaming Lotus Girls, 2007 BRAF grantees, will tell us about recent performances in Amsterdam and future plans.
• Special guest Dr. Paul Doherty, a physicist from the San Francisco Exploratorium will explain and demonstrate aspects of the physics and chemistry of fire.
• Acclaimed performer Vatra Amadzich will illuminate us on the history of fire dancing and perform for the audience.

BRAF members and donors come for free! We want to meet you again and show our appreciation for your support. Stay tuned for our next Elemental Interaction in June:  AIR.

Feel free to spread the word as anyone is welcome to attend– a donation of $10.00 is suggested for non-members. If you know anyone who wants to become a BRAF member, this is a great opportunity to make this event the first of many enjoyable benefits. Please ask them to contact info @blackrockarts.org, call (415) 626-1248, or visit www.blackrockarts.org/participate for details about joining our community.

More About the Elemental Interactions: FIRE participants:

Crimson Rose is Administrative Director and Pyrotechnic Performance Director for Burning Man. Crimson helps people create art and destroy it safely. This includes the famed Burn of the Man, the monthly Beach Burns in San Francisco, and the Fire Conclave, which surrounds the man with 200+ fire performers on the night of the Burn. Prior to this position, Crimson worked in theater and as a fine art model and dancer for 27 years.

The Flaming Lotus Girls are a San Francisco-based group of female and male artists collaborating all year round to create exceptional fire art and provide a resource for learning metalworking and other essential shop skills. Their installations incorporate flame effects and enticing design on a gargantuan scale and are beloved by audiences worldwide. www.flaminglotus.com

Author, physicist and physics teacher Paul Doherty is a Senior Staff Scientist at the Exploratorium. He received his PhD in Solid State Physics from MIT in 1974, and was a tenured physics professor at Oakland University until 1986 when he joined the Exploratorium. He has written many science articles and books including the Explorabook, which sold over a million copies. Creator of a website with over 900 pages of science explorations, and a virtual science museum named The ‘Splo in Second Life, Paul is the recipient of the Faraday award for excellence in science communication. Paul’s musical instrument of choice is a corrugated tube called a whirly and he is credited with discovering the shape of snowflakes on Mars. Paul loves to play with fire and explosions. www.exo.net/~pauld

Vatra Amidzich is a World-Class, professional Fire Dancer who has performed at a wide variety of events ranging from intimate gatherings to massive festivals in front of crowds of over 50,000 people. Vatra is the founder of Pyronauts, an International all-star, super-hero troupe that performs in Burning Man’s Fire Conclave around the Man just prior to ignition. Pyronauts were honored with a position on the front and center, 6:00 side of the Man in 2005, 2006, and 2007. There are Pyronauts from 19 U.S. states and 22 countries Worldwide and every Pyronaut is at the top of their art form. Some Pyronauts perform with Cirque du Soleil and others have won the HomeOfPoi.com “Circles of Light” International Video Competition. http//vatra.org