BY BEN MARQUEZ
Every year around spring time, 20,000 people get a spark jolted into their souls. You might be asking what that spark might be. Well, it’s called Lightening in a Bottle, one of California’s most anticipated arts, music, and yoga events. Celebrating its 11th year, the festival will take place in Bradley, CA and it will run from Wednesday, May 25 until Monday, May 30, 2016.
A transformative event, LIB is presented by The Do Lab, a company that seeks to promote social experiences, sustainability, healthy living, and creativity expression. The Do Lab achieves this by creating immersive environments and building innovative structures that transform any venue into another world. LIB first started in 2000 as a private birthday party and a celebration of nature and music. From 2000 to 2003 it reoccurred every July as a private event and then finally, in 2004, it transformed into a public event and has since been going strong. An electric mix of music, art, and culture, the festival features guest speakers, visual and interactive art installations, yoga classes, group meditation, and other attraction, LIB is a multi-sensory event, though music is a huge part of the draw. This year’s lineup contains up-and-coming artist along with powerhouse names.
Musical headliners include Australia’s smooth and groovy singer-songwriter Chet Faker, whose hit 2014 single “Gold” will have you snapping your fingers and swinging your hips side to side, as well as Canadian singer-producer Grimes who makes futuristic, rebellious electropop that will definitely have you pumped and feeling adventurous. A number of DJ’s and electronic music producers will be hitting the stage as well, including The UKs Jaime xx and Moderat, the electronic collaboration between Modeselektor and Apparat.
Do Lab also has added more diversity to this year’s LIB by booking more female artists than ever, such as Alina Baraz, Marian Hill, Hundred Waters, Mija, Rubblebucket, TOKiMONSTA, Magda, Ibeyi, and Francesca Lombardo. Other stand-outs include Four Tet, Cashmere Cat, Big Gigantic, and The Polish Ambassador.
The experiences offered at LIB are what many people have called life changing. The Lucent Temple of Consciousness is positioned the middle of the festival grounds, acting as a sanctuary full of featuring world-renown visionaries, wisdom keepers, teachers, healers, activists, performers, and musicians. The Temple allows you to activate your body, explore your mind, and open your heart. The Village itself is a cultural experience that shows you how to incorporate village life into a contemporary context. This includes the Sacred Fire, Ancestral Arts, Community Lodge, Witch’s Hut, and the Permaculture Action Hub.
The Do Lab has also organized various exhibits for art lovers. This is the 10th year in a row that the Do Art Foundation, the public art non-profit of The Do Lab, will be live painting pieces of art inspired by the festival. The auction Art & Lightning in a Paintcan will give attendees the opportunity to take home canvasses and prints, while Do Art Foundation, a non-profit arts organization, will be showcasing work and promoting the creation of art in public spaces.
Other big attractions of the festival include The Learning Kitchen, where they offer hands-on nutrition classes and demonstrations, and the interactive stage The Grand Artique which brings a gypsy encampment to life with heavy hitting music. And last but not least, there is The Marketplace, a pop-up market that is known for having choice vendors and community-made goods such as clothing and jewelry. The Marketplace also offers some of the best local food vendors from the West Coast. This includes a wide variety of vegetarian, raw, organic and non-GMO options as well as beer, wine, and spirits.
The immersive environments at LIB will have you on your toes with unique opportunities to stumble upon. Have fun, explore, and don’t set any boundaries for yourself. Lightning in a Bottle is a world built for individual minds and lovers of the arts.
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