black rock city
Raising the Man
Jul/16/10 | permalink
There's a fantastic post on the Burning Blog from Dan Miller, the man who helped build, raise and burn the Man from 1990-2000. It is historical in nature and shares many interesting stories about the evolution of this ritual:
In 1989, on Baker Beach with the Golden Gate Bridge looming to the east, we had a defining moment — due to the lack of engineering prowess and the shear underestimation of the dynamics of the growth of the Man vs. physics, when raising him, his legs, head and pulling rope snapped. I remember shuddering in horror at the mess amidst the penetrating, salty gales; first, that someone might have been skewered underneath (luckily not) and that there was no hope of repairing our broken Man in this desperate moment. Then it dawned on us that we could burn him right justly in his humiliating pile and slink back to the drawing board for our next year’s invocation.
As serendipity would have it, a couple of intrepid structural engineers stepped up and offered their services — anonymously (things were, cough, cough, guerrilla back then; begging forgiveness from the authorities was doable, permission, yeah, right, a three-storey wienie roast).
Read the rest, including the days of the hay bale pyramid and the solar source of the flame at http://blog.burningman.com/metropol/raising-the-man/
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"Cruising at Burning Man"
Jun/08/10 | permalink
Yes, there are all sorts of cruising
styles going on in Black Rock City, but in this case, we're talking
about motorcyclists hitting the scene. A great Burning Man overview
article by J. Joshua Placa of motorcycle-usa.com, of all places. We
are everywhere!
"Next time you’re droning down the highway wishing some adventure would come your way, take a moment to imagine a place where you can be truly free and uninhibited, a biker’s paradise. Picture somewhere that is all you ever dreamt motorcycle rallies should be, but never were. This isn’t the latest 3D fantasy flick; the event is real, and you can ride there.
The road to Utopia is open but once a year. For a singular week in September, some 50,000 of the faithful make the pilgrimage to a naked playa somewhere in the sun-drenched Nevada desert. The destination is Burning Man, a galactic, raw romp of pure, dazzling, inconceivable fun. If you ride anywhere in your life, ride here.
This is not somewhere over the rainbow. You can find it off Nevada Route 447, near the parched town of Gerlach, 120 miles north of Reno, pretty much right in the middle of absolutely Nowhere. It kind of looks like hell, but it will feel like heaven.
The annual event is an alternative-culture, avant-garde happening that redefines the borders of bohemia. Those frontiers were last seen in the underbelly of cities like New York and San Francisco, circa 1960s. They haven’t vanished, they just moved to the desert. This interactive art-music-weirdness festival is a coronation of passion, creation, destruction and rebirth.
In 2009, Burning Man drew nearly 44,000 freedom seeking souls from around the planet to its bare, fertile bosom. They came by motorcycle, they came by scooter, they came by serpentine waves of RV caravans, cars, SUVs, trucks, bicycles, and vehicles of unknown origin. They come more each year.
"Black Rock City" is temporarily erected on a featureless alkaline clay playa of the Black Rock Desert, complete with streets, signs, radio stations, a daily newsletter, a town square and a volunteer civilian patrol, the Black Rock Rangers. Nothing can live on the salt flats—what better place for a party?
It is a surreal, sensual experience that will enrich you, change you and leave you wondering why the hell this can't happen everyday. The event's crescendo is the spectacular, ritualistic burn of The Man in an out-of-this-world pyrotechnic display that makes the Fourth of July look like a wet firecracker. Thousands defy the dark, dancing under a full moon in frenetic revelry. The Man never dies; it renews itself every year as the centerpiece of this experimental community........
"Next time you’re droning down the highway wishing some adventure would come your way, take a moment to imagine a place where you can be truly free and uninhibited, a biker’s paradise. Picture somewhere that is all you ever dreamt motorcycle rallies should be, but never were. This isn’t the latest 3D fantasy flick; the event is real, and you can ride there.
The road to Utopia is open but once a year. For a singular week in September, some 50,000 of the faithful make the pilgrimage to a naked playa somewhere in the sun-drenched Nevada desert. The destination is Burning Man, a galactic, raw romp of pure, dazzling, inconceivable fun. If you ride anywhere in your life, ride here.
This is not somewhere over the rainbow. You can find it off Nevada Route 447, near the parched town of Gerlach, 120 miles north of Reno, pretty much right in the middle of absolutely Nowhere. It kind of looks like hell, but it will feel like heaven.
The annual event is an alternative-culture, avant-garde happening that redefines the borders of bohemia. Those frontiers were last seen in the underbelly of cities like New York and San Francisco, circa 1960s. They haven’t vanished, they just moved to the desert. This interactive art-music-weirdness festival is a coronation of passion, creation, destruction and rebirth.
In 2009, Burning Man drew nearly 44,000 freedom seeking souls from around the planet to its bare, fertile bosom. They came by motorcycle, they came by scooter, they came by serpentine waves of RV caravans, cars, SUVs, trucks, bicycles, and vehicles of unknown origin. They come more each year.
"Black Rock City" is temporarily erected on a featureless alkaline clay playa of the Black Rock Desert, complete with streets, signs, radio stations, a daily newsletter, a town square and a volunteer civilian patrol, the Black Rock Rangers. Nothing can live on the salt flats—what better place for a party?
It is a surreal, sensual experience that will enrich you, change you and leave you wondering why the hell this can't happen everyday. The event's crescendo is the spectacular, ritualistic burn of The Man in an out-of-this-world pyrotechnic display that makes the Fourth of July look like a wet firecracker. Thousands defy the dark, dancing under a full moon in frenetic revelry. The Man never dies; it renews itself every year as the centerpiece of this experimental community........
The emphasis at this metaphorical metropolis is on participation, on active involvement with people from all ages and walks of life, and interactive art forms that boggle the imagination and enchant the senses. From super-size playgrounds to outdoor art galleries to scooters and motorcycles shaped like flying saucers, dinosaurs and land sharks to Taj Mahal-like edifices and robotic sculptures, the dry lake bed is populated with the bizarre, the comical, the sublime, the suggestive, the bold, the sardonic, and mostly, the unreal. It is raw, it is refined, it is provocative and will tilt your view of the world 180 degrees. It has been called, "an arena of visionary reality."
No matter how creative you think you are, you will be humbled. Burning Man cannot be compared to any other event in the history of the human race, or any race. It is a daring fusion of Woodstock, a San Francisco performing arts festival, Mardi Gras, Halloween, and Daytona Bike Week. It is an unbridled 24-hour, seven-day celebration. It is pagan, spiritual, clothes optional; it is creatively assertive, wild, outrageous fun colored in body paint.
Through a prism of art and action, of liberated self-expression and total acceptance, a joyous light shining brighter than the hot Nevada sun will focus in your mind, burn away your paradigms, and change the way you think....
Rather than always wear the predictable biker uniform of menacing leather and evil T-shirts, you can reinvent yourself everyday. The biggest decision you'll have to make is which body paint to use that afternoon. Complete or partial nudity is in vogue. You can dress like the man from Mars, or you can don nothing but the international motorcycle colors of black and red and no one will bat a glittered eye. This may be one of the reasons this is such a peaceful happening—it’s hard to argue with a naked person.
Perhaps awkward at first, it very quickly seems like the natural state of things. It's a non-conformist's dream; you can be whatever you want to be. If you ever wanted to ride your bike clothes-free, this is the place. After days in big black boots, the clay playa feels good on bare feet....
All commercialism is banned; gawking is discouraged. Nothing is sold here, not even T-shirts, but there is barter. You can swap a jar of mayonnaise for a bottle of Jack Daniels, or bread for a blanket, or water for a massage. The void of vendors, the absolute lack of something, anything to buy forces people to move their focus away from themselves and onto the experience. It encourages people to act out, to express their otherwise private passions and beliefs without care or consequence.
Burning Man means something different to most people. It can be a spiritual experience fraught with pomp and ceremony, a “burning” or cleansing of the soul, or it can be just one tremendous release. To most, it's a mix of many things, a collage of fantasy and free-spiritedness.
Virtually anything and everything goes, as long as it hurts no one. The police stay on the periphery and out of the way unless there is real trouble, which has never, to my knowledge, occurred here. The citizens of Black Rock City do a good job at policing themselves. People like it that way, and it works, at least for a week."
Full text at http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/321/7103/Motorcycle-Article/Cruising-at-Burning-Man-Festival.aspx
Warming up...
Apr/15/10 | permalink
Pavilion of the Man 2010 - Rendering by Andrew Johnstone - Design by Rod Garrett and Larry Harvey
A sneak peak at some of the mindblowing installations that you can expect to see in Black Rock City 2010: Metropolis -- the art honorariums have been announced.
An interesting post by one of the builders of the 2010 temple for Metropolis, reflecting on how one gets involved with building the temple to begin with. (The crew also has a Facebook page under "temple2010" to track the progress of designing and building this year's temple and a website with some rough sketches and concepts.)
"This structure is not the temple at all. It is only wood turned into walls, an invitation to passersby who stand within them to search for the temple in their own heads. For only there is the temple to be found."
Lastly, an interview from the Public Radio Project with BM founder Larry Harvey on Black Rock City's gift economy.
Black Rock City rising, like a mirage
in the desert
Aug/28/09 | permalink
Photos from John
Curley via
the Burning
Blog. I'm still
packing, streaming BMIR, trying to stay calm and collected (for a
few more hours at least)....
Building BRC
Aug/19/09 | permalink
Black Rock City is springing to life from the prehistoric sands of Lake Lahontan right now in anticipation of Burning Man 2009: Evolution!!! Here is a photograph of the Man's platform, constructed in a style similar to 2008's "Belgian Waffle." John Curley is on the scene, posting stories and photos about building BRC. Shit is blowing up!!!
Map of Black Rock City
Jul/31/09 | permalink
more views from BRC 08
Aug/24/08 | permalink
From the Burning Blog -- their updates from the playa have
been crucial to me these past few days as homesickness is
throttling me. They don't post often, but what they put up has been
appreciated!
And the construction of this year's temple, Basura Sagrada --
And the construction of this year's temple, Basura Sagrada --
BRC Rising!
Aug/21/08 | permalink
The Burning Blog has been mostly sleepy, with the
occasional interesting ponderings, but has in recent days finally
started picking up steam as the city is taking shape and empty
playa slowly filling up with peoples and structures. It really,
truly is underway, and several friends are dusting off their wigs from last
year, packing up
their cars and getting ready to roll.... Here are some scenes of
Black Rock City taking shape in the desert.
(More photos when you "Click here for more...")
(More photos when you "Click here for more...")
The Man, 2008
Aug/20/08 | permalink
Browsing through the official
Burning
Blog today, I
nearly choked on my chai when this image popped up on my screen at
work --
THE MAN HAS RISEN! LONG LIVE THE MAN! BURN THAT DUDE DOWN!
THE MAN HAS RISEN! LONG LIVE THE MAN! BURN THAT DUDE DOWN!
Playa Panoramas
Feb/25/08 | permalink
This video does a good job of capturing some of the inexplicable and disorienting playa vision I experienced during my 10 days in BRC. Thanks Zoyous!
--moontroll
dust storms & rainbows
Sep/19/07 | permalink
moontroll's
short film celebrating the extreme weather events of Burning Man
2007 now showing!
This is the movie I made from scraps of film footage and fotos and playa field recordings from the Green Man. I just got a new video editing program and this was my first time playing around with it. Right now it is being hosted at YouTube, though I plan on posting a higher resolution version over on the Films section of this site soon -- it is much more impressive and enjoyable to watch it at full screen with decent res & sound.
(update 10/10: the film is now posted over on the Films page, but it is kinda fucked up at the moment--I need to keep tinkering with it, though I think it is still watchable!)
If you like it, please share your feedback in the dBm comments feed.
Enjoy!
Black Rock City street names
Jun/21/07 | permalink
In our last announcement, we gave you some information on the
layout of Black Rock City for 2007. This included information on
the size of the blocks, placement of plazas, number of streets, etc.
Here are the street names for this year . . .
The radial-streets are still numbered in the clock formation we
are all familiar with. Center Camp at 6:00. Plazas at 9:00, 7:30,
4:30, and 3:30. Camping/placement areas end at 10:00 and 2:00.
The Man at the center.
The concentric-streets begin at the Esplanade and thereafter go :
ESPLANADE
ARCTIC
BOREAL
CORAL REEF
DESERT
ESTUARY
FRESHWATER
GRASSLAND
HABITAT
INTERTIDAL
JUNGLE
KELP FOREST
LANDFILL
the "ring road" around Center Camp is
EVOLUTION
Enjoy!