Sembazuru: the Temple of Community

An American Dream… though we all may be different, together we are a community. We offer you each a way to flaunt your unique individuality in an art project which when gathered together will create Sembazuru, the Temple of Community.

The Temple of Community is a thirty-foot-high rendition of an origami crane. The crane is a strong and graceful bird, a majestic symbol of longevity, happiness, and wisdom. It is said that the person who folds 1,000 cranes will be granted these gifts in their life, a practice called Sembazuru in Japan.

On the playa, Sembazuru will be a temple for mourning, reflection and release. The crane symbolizes the act of letting go - of loved ones, places, feelings, ideas. It is a celebration of life, death and a starting anew, of making wishes, and finding peace together with our community.

Encircling this central figure will be your individual, unique renditions of smaller cranes made by you! The expansive Gateway to the Future will welcome all into this circle. The large crane will provide shelter from the sun and have a viewing platform on its back. Participants will be able to fold Origami cranes and place them or other memorabilia inside wooden coffins which will be burned along with all the cranes at the end of the week.

Whether we are putting to rest thoughts and feelings or memorabilia in coffins to be sacrificed by flame, hoping that our wishes will take flight on wings of a crane, or just reflecting on our hopes, fears, and dreams, Sembazuru unites us on a unique level. Though we all may be different, together we are a community.