Usually occurring in April over a series of weekends is Coachella, a music festival that features big name and unknown artists. Outside of showcasing talented musicians however the festival also features installation art. This year there were 19 art installations on the festival grounds including a giant yellow and black caterpillar by Mike Grandaw, which overnight, turned into a blue, orange, and yellow butterfly; an enormous spacesuit, reminiscent of the MTV icon, hovering over the crowd, its arms reaching out as if to embrace them; a red robot sculpture by Christian Ristow holding a blue flower; as well as a curvaceous light installation by Stereo-Bot. Although the festival goers may not appreciate the art as much as the music, there leaves a lot to be interpreted and discovered about the works.
Much like the Burning Man festival that takes place in Nevada in August, art is very much a part of the experience. A place where the art is not for sale and self-expression is embraced leaves a lot to be desired in this day and age. Therefore it is freeing to go to festivals like Coachella or Burning Man and enjoy the art that was created specifically for that experience. It makes you wonder if artists such as Alexander Calder, Joan Miró or Pablo Picasso whose artistic ideologies challenged the normal standards of art interpretation would have contributed to such events...