Mayan Warrior to Rebuild Art Car for Debut at Burning Man 2024 After Original was Destroyed in Fire

Famous burning man art car, mayan warrior, has a chance to be reborn after its devAstating fire earlier this april

One of Burning Man’s most iconic and beloved art cars, Mayan Warrior, is rising from the ashes of its tragic destruction. After a particularly tough journey to a fundraiser in Mexico, the famous art car had caught on fire and was completely incinerated within minutes. While the driver had fortunately been unharmed, the millions of dollars in onboard equipment had been lost. Still, the team behind Mayan Warrior has been rebuilding the art car under a new vision more focused on the evolving culture surrounding Burning Man in recent years. The new and improved version of Mayan Warrior is expected to be a functional mobile stage as the Mayan Warrior team transitions “into a more diverse spectrum of musical and cultural performances” said Mayan Warrior’s Founder, Pablo González Vargas.

Mayan Warrior is a collective of artists, craftsmen, photographers, designers, technologists, and architects from Mexico City and Northern California. The group is known for creating immersive experiences that combine music, art, and technology. Mayan Warrior’s art cars were a testament to their creativity and dedication to the Burning Man ethos. Still, as time passed, the pressures of maintaining such an art car directly conflicted with the tenets of Burning Man, which focuses on commercial decommodification. Despite the fire, Vargas saw an opportunity. “It was sad, but also liberating in a way,” he said, “because it’s a passion that started growing until [we] were almost, like, a little bit slaves to it.”

The original Mayan Warrior which was first introduced at Burning Man in 2011, had just celebrated its 10th anniversary this past year. Since its inception, it has become one of the most iconic art cars in the world. It has amassed thousands of loyal fans and the pressure to be spectacular every year. As a result, Mayan Warrior found itself stuck in a ceaseless cycle of touring to raise funds to maintain the car. The car has traveled to festivals and events all over the globe, including Coachella, Art Basel Miami, and Mexico’s Day of the Dead celebrations.

Mayan Warrior has even collaborated with some of the biggest names in electronic music, including Carl Craig, Richie Hawtin, and Damian Lazarus. The group’s philosophy is centered around creating transformative experiences that bring people together through music and art.

The newest rendition of the Mayan Warrior art car will see it shift from a pure art car to more of a mobile stage. Furthermore, fans of Mayan Warrior may be disappointed to hear that the crew will be shrinking the number of annual fundraising events from 12 to 4. All of these changes will be made in order to ensure that the Mayan Warrior art car remains true to its original purposes and to allow its crew to rest. Furthermore, Mayan Warrior has listed LA-based events company Stranger Than as an official Mayan Warrior collaborator.

Mayan Warrior’s new art car is set to make its debut at Burning Man 2024. In the meantime, it has already begun fundraising with events in LA and Brooklyn over Halloween weekend. Check out below for the official fundraiser and rebuilding announcement: