The Dunedin Midwinter Carnival will launch into a surreal space next weekend.
Carnival artistic director Juliet Novena Sorrel said the carnival staff began planning the carnival around the time David Bowie died.
The rock star, and his Ziggy Stardust concept, partly inspired the "future worlds'' theme of this year's carnival, which would launch around the Octagon circuit on June 18.
The giant lanterns being created included a rocket and an alien robot.
The space theme was more surreal than Star Trek, Ms Novena Sorrel said.
Another theme inspiration was dadaism, an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century.
Dadaism inspired the new giant lantern of birds carrying an elephant and a city on top of a whale.
Dunedin Midwinter Celebrations Trust was still looking for a warehouse space and was "squatting'' at a Dunedin City Council warehouse in Ward St, which the council was selling by tender.
The "cold and dirty'' warehouse had resulted in some volunteers refusing to work in the space.
"We are on tenterhooks. We could lose the carnival because we don't have a building.''
The trust had a vision of having a permanent home in central Dunedin, and conducting tours including the Midsummer Lights exhibition for summer solstice.
Carnival artist Filipa Crofskey said a lack of lantern housing was a "crisis''.
"We need somewhere for these to go. What is going to become of them? ... We need a sponsor,'' Mrs Crofskey said.
