Jessica Levine

168 by 108 by 108 in. 426.7 by 274.3 by 274.3 cm.

The artist

I create art to cause people to think in different ways and to push the boundaries of what is possible. My sociological background paired with my artistic and technical fabrication skills allow me to create large scale metal sculptures with deep conceptual meanings. I use steel to three dimensionally draw in real space, creating illusory shapes out of thousands of hand cut, bent, and welded pieces of metal. I reference my line drawings as I sculpt through an organic, traditional process over the course of months. Building sculptures is what I truly love to do with all of my heart.

I attended Burning Man for the first time as a third year fine art and sociology student at UC Santa Cruz, and it opened my mind to the possibilities of what art could be. That was the art world I wanted to be a part of, and my focus turned to building large scale sculptures. My dream was to receive a Burning Man honoraria art grant, which came true in 2017. I was fortunate enough to receive grants in 2018 and 2019 as well, which allowed me to develop my skills immensely, and has led to so many other opportunities and incredible human connections. It was also so much FUN! I am deeply grateful to the Burning Man organization for believing in me, and for granting me the opportunities to bring my big ideas into this shared reality.

FloBot is a fourteen foot tall interactive flower-like steel sculpture with a character all her own. She stands on exposed roots as she evolves into a blossomed being. People may climb up the roots and "get inside her head" bouncing and rocking with the use of large suspension springs. Flo represents the notion of learning to flow with all of the parts of one's self, and finding strength within them. Her roots correlate with all of the deepest parts of ourselves–the buried parts, which make us who we are. Exposing the roots and making them a part of the blossom at the top represents the idea that everything is an integral part of the whole self, even (and especially) the buried parts–not just the pretty flowery surface parts. 

She took six months of constant work to complete, and evolved as she was built. FloBot turned into her own entity. 

- Jessica Levine