How Collaborations Continue to Build Elements Lakewood Festival

View of the water stage | Photo: Courtesy of Elements Lakewood, Alive Coverage

Brooklyn’s music and art community is built off of collaborations. Artists in the industry have established themselves in niche roles for festivals and events. You have talent in the scene that’s known for building elaborate art structures with projection art (RhizomeNYC). You have avant-garde performers that add appeal to stages as DJs play (House of Yes). You have some usual suspects that produce and DJ house music (The Golden Pony and DJ Dirtylooks). Along with the staples, the scene is made up of micro-groups that team up to bring an offering to others, such as art structures or health and wellness classes and are always eager to jump onboard to bring additional elements to an event.

Performers | Courtesy of Elements Lakewood, Alive Coverage

This Memorial Day Weekend at Elements Lakewood Festival was no exception to the beautiful result of collaborations. In fact, the production company behind the mastery, BangOnNYC!, are one of the perfect examples of this generation staying true to synergistic efforts: building a weekend-long music and arts festival off of their relationships in the art and music world. Eleven years since its founding, this team of event producers, (along with their hidden talents ranging from DJing to carpentry), has thrown thematic warehouse parties scattered across Brooklyn’s underground that have grown too popular and large in size. Therefore, the proper next step was taking their event package – fire performers, DJs, art installations, project mapping stages – to a large venue for a full weekend experience and calling in a few artists friends to pull out all the stops.

Art: Escape Campervan & Muralist @Mastronyc | Photo: Brittany NO FOMO

Performers KaytiBunny & Ali Luminescent | Photo: Brittany NO FOMO

It’s clear to see that a festival can be better when created together. So in celebration of joint efforts, we are giving a nod to the collaborators that made this Elements Lakewood Festival experience…

Claude VonStroke on the Fire Stage| Alive Coverage

Dirtybird

An independent electronic music record label based in San Francisco who are known for their Dirtybird BBQ parties and Dirtybird East & West Festivals.

You know the Dirtybird crew is in town when you see totem poles with “Stroke It” written across them, calling attention to DJ/producer Claude VonStroke, and when festivalgoers hold large glowing plastic eggs. Yes, eggs. Another icon for the Dirtybird collective. Claude literally lit up the Fire Stage, bringing his uplifting spirits to the intimate crowd.

Mikey Lion on the Fire Stage| Alive Coverage

Desert Hearts


A group of artists that make up a record label, throw festivals, and travel together to perform across stages, are a tribute to house, techno, and love at intimate gatherings that focus on art and music.

Luckily for us on the East Coast, Desert Hearts has a great relationship with BangOnNYC! and grace many of the stages at their NY based events. This year’s festival, we got the top dogs from the collective who must have flew straight from Lightning in a Bottle festival on the West Coast to bring us their music – Mikey Lion, Lee Reynolds, Marbs, and Porkchop.

 

Tree House by the Air Stage | Photo: Erin Yasmeen

 

Air Stage | Photo: Courtesy of Elements Lakewood, Alive Coverage

 

BAE Collective

Before Anything Else is a healing art and music collective by women for all that bring offerings that elevate connection and celebrate feminine creativity.

The collective held workshops and performance in the health and wellness sections of the festival along with curating a cabin for all females to stay over the weekend as a safe space away from the party.

The Hanoux Wellnest | Photos: Courtesy of Elements Lakewood, Alive Coverage

Vox Noctem

The team curates safe spaces at events exploring adaptations of performance, sound, art, and alchemy.

Vox Noctem put together the secret VIP area over the weekend that only opened after 3AM where a hot tub, an iridescent pool, smooth music, and sunrise ceremonies were in order every morning. To feel swanky while covered in mud from the fest was definitely a nice little retreat.

 

Roller Rink Disco | Photo: Brittany NO FOMO

Excited to see what these collectives bring to the festival scene next year!

 

 

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