Black Rock Bell FAQ
You have questions about our physical phone booth, here are some answers! There are some spoilers about how we make this magical piece happen, so check out or other pages if you want to keep your experience fresh
(Yes, a real 8 foot tall metal phone booth. Brought to you by Black Rock Bell.)
So… y’all just set up an actual phone booth and people can talk to God?
Yes. You can talk to any deity really… you never know who will pick up the phone to respond.
How do the interactions with God or a deity usually go?
Most of the time it’s just kind of silly. Sometimes the calls are a lot deeper. Calls around sunset are some of our favorites.
The piece often becomes a hot topic of conversation, you’ll notice a lot more talk about talking with (or being) a deity after a day or two of operation.
The phone booth represents many different things to participants. Some see it as a form of therapy, some see it as a way to poke fun at organized religion and others are living out their dream of being on “Crank Yankers”. We see it as a way to bring community members together to have real, heart felt experiences.
What is it? *spoiler alert ahead*
The phone booth is a private two way corded analog phone that is answered on the other end by a live deity or “God” at the event. It is highly interactive and encourages community participation, paticipants are encouraged to use either end of the phone line. The phone booth is a unique sculpture based off of a traditional telephone booth aesthetic, which participants can explore to find a few easter eggs. The god lounge is a small geodesic dome that provides a comfortable space for “Gods” to sit and answer incoming calls
The first Talk to God phone booth installation was created 20 years ago with a simple idea: would you like to talk to God? What came of the idea is one of the longest running and most photographed interactive art installations existing on playa at Burning Man. No one knows how many calls have been answered, but many remember the experience from either side of the line. The phone booth has NEVER missed a burn and even went virtual online during the pandemic. Today we continue to bring it to the playa and are expanding our efforts to bring it to regional burns, festivals and community events.
It is a choose your own adventure experience, it is a gift to the community with no expectation of receiving anything back. What is a more radical expression of art than a phone booth that you talk to a non-denominational, non-religious Deity in? Any Deity, animal or figure from any possible culture, story could be in the phone booth at any possible moment. The phone booth leaves no trace, we value being able to have it there and then it will mysteriously vanish with nothing left behind.
Who runs it and funds this as art?
The Talk to God phone booth has always been managed by a small group of people who love and believe in this art piece. Our community is larger after our online efforts during the pandemic and we are ready to take on more events, but it is still just a group of people that see a lot of people interact with this art piece.
The Talk To God phone booth is not funded by or sponsored by any business or religious organization. We DO NOT make money from it and any funds, compensation given or donated to us are used to maintain and run the art project.
What is a more radical expression of art than a phone booth that you talk to your very own personal god? It is a choose your own adventure experience, a gift to the community with no expectation of receiving anything back. The phone booth leaves no trace, we value being able to have it there and then it will mysteriously vanish with nothing left behind.
Where has it been?
The Talk To God phone booth has previously participated at:
Burning Man, Black Rock City NV
Cascade Equinox Festival, Redmond OR
To The Moon Tennessee Regional Burn
Tectonic SHIFT Festival, Grass Valley OR
SOAK Oregon Regional Burn
Reed College Ren Faire, Portland OR
Treasure Island Music Festival, San Fransisco CA
Kiwi Burn, Hunterville New Zealand
Symbiosis Gathering, Woodward Reservior CA
Is it actually religious? Is it actually art?
For those of you who haven’t participated with the Talk To God phone booth or aren’t familiar with what it is, this is a secular art project and functional sculpture with aspects of performance art. We do not follow, nor are we restricted to any religious denomination, beliefs or system of faith. We welcome and embrace ALL humans, world cultures and deities with kindness and respect. This art piece maintains it’s deep roots with Burning Man culture. We value the 10 principles of Burning Man.
What does the Talk to God Phone booth look like at my event?
The talk to god is an interactive sculptural installation meant for high-traffic areas, installed in two parts/places.
The public facing half is a, 8 foot tall metal phone booth with a working analog “payphone” style phone inside. When you pick up the phone there is Deity (live human) on the other end.
SPOILER ALERT:
Calls are answered in the “God Lounge” aka Pantheon, a cozy space with seating for 4-6 deities, a few books, some basic instructions, and of course another phone to take calls. For those who hang around, take a restful pose with new friends, and answer calls. We don’t really tell god what to do, but we encourage our deities to always be kind no matter what, be the type of god they want to see in the world today, stay well hydrated and ready for anyone to call in.
We monitor the lounge and keep the phone line operational, but otherwise encourage participants at your event to participate as much as possible.
What is Black Rock Bell?
Black Rock Bell, formerly Black Rock Telephone and Telegraph Company, provides metaphysical voice, data, Internet telecommunications, and professional woo-woo services to festivals, gatherings, and other community-centered events.
This iconic semi-annual dusty service, an opportunity to speak on the line to the divine, is brought to you by the benevolent Deities at Black Rock Bell, sponsored by Only Gods and www.TalkToGodVirtual.com.
Contacts:
Use the contact form on this website, or Email us TalkToGodPhone@gmail.com
Gretchen / Cougar – West Coast Phone #2 / The Manager
Aaron / Be Not Afraid – West Coast Phone #1 / Lead Evangelist
Kes / Eternity – East Coast Phone / Lead Angel (operations anticipated Q3 2024)
Cheekybug – East Coast Phone / CTO of Black Rock Bell
Theora – Virtual talk to god operations/ Lead angel
Social Media: You Betcha!
Website https://www.talktogodvirtual.com
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/Talk_To_God_Phone
Facebook https://www.Facebook.com/talktogodphonebooth
Articles, Video and Podcasts about the Talk To God phone booth art project:
Who started the talk to god phone/Black Rock Bell?
Many hands have been a part of “shepherding” this piece over our long history, and thousands of nameless callers and gods to thank for their interactions with this piece. Read more about the history of the phone booth here:
How do I get the talk to god phone booth to my event?
Please reach out! We have a lot of experience bringing to and operating this piece in a music and art festival environment. Our team is currently equipped to bring the physical booths to events along the west coast, and are working hard to bring an east coast booth online!