dySTOPia - Chicago Decompression 2025
We live inside dystopias of our own making — surveillance, disconnection, overconsumption, climate collapse, algorithmic echo chambers. But what if the first step toward liberation is to stop? This Decompression invites you to gather, not to mourn — but to build, to burn, to reimagine.
dySTOPia is a rupture. A pause. A protest. A rewiring. It’s where we deconstruct the dystopian narratives and systems around us — not with despair, but with defiance, imagination, and radical joy.
Chicago’s Burning Man Decompression happens Nov 15 at the amazing THEATER iO and we’re calling on all creators, disruptors, and participators to join the uprising! If you are longing to connect more with the Chicago Burning Man community, then it’s time to decompress.
B.U.R.N’s mission is to foster community arts through grass-roots projects and civic collaborations all of which we celebrate at Decompression and other events throughout the year. Decompression has been a long rooted tradition in Burning Man communities around the world with Chicago being amongst one of the most beloved.
This year, we’re doing things a bit differently. Focusing on one of our 10 principles, COMMUNAL EFFORT. Participation Is the Cure: This isn’t a show. This is an experiment in collective liberation where we connect your art, your heart, your voice and your weird. B.U.R.N. is offering ART GRANTS to help fund creative, interactive, and community-driven camp ideas at this year’s dySTOPia.
