Spanish artist Carles García O’Dowd presents “Cupola: Mater Aeterna,” a monumental, illustrated dome installation at “Burning Man 2025”

Mon, August 25 — Sun, August 31, 2025
Metal Mimi Camp, 6:30 & C, Black Rock City, Nevada

The official unveiling will take place on Thursday, August 21 at 8 pm as part of Burning Man 2025. The piece will remain on view throughout the duration of the festival.

Exploring myth, ecology, and storytelling

At Burning Man 2025, Spanish artist Carles García O’Dowd presents Cupola: Mater Aeterna, a huge, illustrated dome that transforms narrative muralism into an immersive sanctuary of light, story, and myth. The 36-foot geodesic structure, handcrafted in Oaxaca, is composed of 22 black-and-white fabric panels lit from within by a dynamic LED system.

Rooted in drawing and oral storytelling, the work invites visitors to step inside a symbolic observatory where speculative fiction, ecological urgency, and collective memory collide. Inspired by Ursula K. Le Guin, Buckminster Fuller, and Japanese sci-fi manga, the piece reflects on our fragile relationship with the Earth through García O’Dowd’s original cosmology of characters, self-absorbed Yoyos and silenced and overburdened Topoids, embodying consumerism and invisible labor.

At the dome’s core, a colossal feminine figure, dismembered and reaching out, evokes the Earth as a maternal being, reawakening ancient animist and matriarchal traditions. The installation’s title refers both to sacred dome painting and the observation module of the ISS, framing the piece as a site of reflection and planetary imagination.

Rather than offering escapism, Cupola: Mater Aeterna emphasizes gathering, embodiment, and myth-making as tools for reimagining our future. Through “activated muralism,” the dome becomes a space of contemplation and community, where drawing, architecture, and storytelling converge in a call for connection.

Carles García O’Dowd

Carles García O’Dowd, born in 1988, is an artist based in New York with Spanish-Irish roots from Palma, Mallorca. His work is influenced by activism, pop culture, and cartoons.

Using drawing and printmaking, he delves into the complexities of modern societies through a fictional universe. His detailed drawings encourage viewers to rethink their perspectives and spark discussions by creating new narratives for our globalized world.

Tags “Burning Man 2025”, “Cupola: Mater Aeterna”, Spanish artist Carles García O’Dowd